ABC's of Castle
by TheresaJoliePitt
Summary: A collection of one-shots. Some are AU, some are not. Just a series of stories that helped me get back into writing fanfiction for this show. Not all chapters are rated M. Enjoy!
1. A

_AN: I'm sure this has been done before, but I wanted to get out of my writing funk and publish a new story. All of the chapters have been written, so updates may come sooner rather than later. Some of these chapters are AU, some are not. Enjoy!_

 **A** lways

Always had been their word for...well for a long time. She couldn't remember if she said it first or if he did. It had been years now since that moment, but it was their word as soon as it was uttered. They didn't have to say that verbally (that it was their word), they just knew. To this day, they said that word to each other and neither of them planned on stopping. She would say it when he told her to be safe at work, when she told him that she loved him, and when she told him that she was going to be his wife for as long as they lived. They used it other times as well and whenever it was uttered by one of them, the other smiled.

When she first told him that they were going to be parents, a few weeks later he started to come up with names, even though she told him to wait until they found out if it was a boy or a girl.

He got into bed next to her one night and before she could even lean over to kiss him goodnight, he spoke. "What's a name that means Always?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, Castle. We don't even know if we're having a boy or a girl yet."

"Then we should think of a name for both, that means always."

"And what if we can't find one?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." He took his laptop off of the side table and opened it up. "Google, don't let me down."

She rested her head against his shoulder as he typed in, "Names that mean always." He clicked on the first link and pressed, Crtl and F, to find what they were looking for faster.

"Nitya."

She shook her head. "No."

"Zyanya"

"No."

"Eileifr"

"No"

"Hoai"

"No."

"It looks like that's it." He sighed. "I was hoping that we could name them after our word."

She smiled. "I could tell, but we'll find the perfect name for our little one. It might not be always, but they'll be our always." She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "I am glad though that you wanted to name them after our word and not..."

"What about Darth Vader?"

"And that's what I was afraid of."

"Han Solo?!"

"Goodnight, Castle."

She was right though, they did think of the perfect name and now their daughter was about a year and half. Kate knew that she was going to start talking any day now. She already was so smart. She shook her head no, told them when she didn't want anymore food, clapped when she wanted to say yes, said "Ma" when she wanted Kate, and "Da" when she wanted Castle. She really hadn't said her first word yet though.

They weren't too worried about that, considering she had her own language and they understood their daughter. She would talk when she was ready. That didn't mean that they weren't getting anxious though. She seemed to be babbling more so these past few weeks and they were both hoping that it was a sign that their daughter was going to say her first words.

Martha tried each day to try and make her say "Grandma." She would come over to the loft and babysit when Castle wanted to go into the precinct and Martha wasn't busy. She would also come over when she just wanted to see her granddaughter. With Alexis living in California, their little one was the only granddaughter that Martha got to see often. It was no secret that she wanted to spoil her, which Kate and Castle allowed to an extent.

Today, Martha was busy with her studio, so Castle was staying home to watch after their little girl. Even though he loved working a case with his wife, he loved this more. Sure, he missed his wife, but playing with his daughter was so much better than dealing with a murder. He only wished that his wife was able to stay home too. Kate got jealous at times, wishing that she could be the one that stayed home and spent that one on one time with their daughter. However, Castle made sure to let her know that their daughter loved her and if that didn't work, the big smile on their daughter's face when she walked through the door proved that.

Kate still had some time though before she had to head into work, so she spent it on the sofa, resting her head against Castle's chest as they watched their daughter play in her play area. She loved this one toy, that had animals on it. She especially liked the noises that came from it when she pulled on the monkey's tail or pressed the button that made the lion roar. Castle joked that those two were her favorites because it reminded her of them. Kate was the leader, the strong, and sometimes scary lion while he was the goofy monkey. She humored him, but she was pretty that wasn't the explanation as to why she liked them the best.

As she took the last sip of her coffee, her phone went off. She closed her eyes and grumbled. That was her alarm, telling her that she had to go to work. She had one more alarm, the alarm that said "This is your last chance before you're late for work." She took one more sip of her coffee before she placed the empty mug in the sink. She'd get to it when she got home, if Castle hadn't washed it by the time she got home. She walked back over to Castle and gave him two soft kisses to his lips.

"I'll be home about six." She pressed another kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too. I'll have dinner waiting as long as our little one doesn't give me a hard time about taking a bath."

"If not, call me and I'll pick something up on my way home." She made her way over to their daughter, who was still content playing. "You be good for daddy sweetheart. Don't say your first words until I come home, missy." She told her that every morning. She knew that the chances of their daughter listening to her was slim, but she could try. So far, it was sort of working. She pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Mommy loves you."

She headed into Castle's office, opening the safe where she kept her gun and her badge. She took it out and placed her gun in her holster and her badge on her hip. She then headed out of his office and towards the coat closet. She got her jacket out and as she placed it on, Castle said the words to her that he always said.

"Be careful, Kate."

She went to open her mouth, to respond, but their daughter did it for her. "Always."

They both looked at their daughter and Kate headed over to her. "What did you say?"

"Always."

Kate and Castle both smiled at their daughter. Castle picked her up and Kate placed a kiss to her head. "See, Castle. I told you...she would be our always, even if we didn't name her Nitya."

"I still say that we should name the next one Han Solo."

She rolled her eyes. "No, Castle. And next one?"

He looked down at her and smiled. "I'm ready whenever you are."

She leaned in and kissed him, nipping at his top lip before she pulled away. "Call your mother up. See if our peanut can spend the night with her tomorrow. We'll start trying then."

He grinned at her words. "I'll call her right now." They then heard their daughter start to fuss in her play area. "After I get our daughter to stop fussing." He pressed a kiss to her lips. "Have a good day, sweetheart."

"I will. Make sure she doesn't say any more words until I get back."

"Always," they heard their little one say.

They both smiled before Kate walked out the door, leaving the two people that she loved the most home and waiting for her to get back.


	2. B

_AN: Thanks for the reviews/favorites/follows! My plan is to update this fic every other day (unless something gets in the way of doing that). You can follow me on Twitter ( smallville0628) for updates. Enjoy!_

 **B** eckett

She looked at the papers for the third time. She wasn't sure if she wanted to do this or not. She had asked for the papers, so some part of her did. However, there was another part of her that wasn't so sure. She loved Castle, she really did, but there was something about changing her name to Kate Castle that she wasn't sure about. She looked at it on paper and couldn't put her finger on it. She was born Kate Beckett and it was who she was. People at work called her Beckett, or badass Beckett when she did something "badass" worthy. K Bexs was her nickname in high school and some of college. No one called her that anymore, but if she changed her name no one would call her that again.

She loved being Mrs. Castle. She loved being Castle's wife, nothing would ever change that, but she didn't love the idea of changing her name. She knew he wanted her to change her name, even though they hadn't talked about that. He called her Mrs. Castle after they got married a few times, so she just figured he was going to want her to change her name. She had been so lost in thought that she didn't hear him come home and enter his office, until she heard his voice.

"What are you doing that has you so lost in thought?" He walked over to her a placed a kiss to her cheek.

She looked up at him and gave him a soft smile. "Oh nothing, just..." She sighed. "Castle, would you hate me if I said I didn't want to take your last name?"

"Kate, I could never hate you." He looked down at the papers and saw what she was filling out. "Ah, I see where this thought has come from." He extended his hand to her and pulled her up out of the chair, wrapping his arms around her. "Kate, whether you want to change your name to Kate Castle or Xnea Warrior Princess, I will still love you and I would never hate you."

She laughed. "Sorry to burst your bubble, Castle, but I'm not changing my name to Xnea Warrior Princess."

"Would have been hot." She rolled her eyes. "I do want you to know though, Kate, that if you do change your name...you'll still be the woman I fell in love with. You're always going to be Kate Beckett, whether you have the name or not."

She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "I'm going to think about it. I do know though that for work purposes, I won't be changing it. Things might get confusing when you're there. That and I would like to try and keep my weakness a secret if I can. I know that once people take one look at us, it's hard for us to hide the fact that we love each other, but if I used your name at work then..."

"Then people might target me to get to you more so."

She nodded and wrapped her arms around him tighter. "And I don't want that to happen. I'd like to keep you as safe as I can."

"And I'd like to keep you as safe as I can. Even though I'm not the detective, I do have my fair share of enemies...like 3XK."

She put her finger to his lips. "Castle, don't worry about me. I promise you, I'm not going to let him or anyone else take me away from you." She moved her finger and placed a kiss to his lips. "Now, come on, Mr. Castle. Lets go have some dinner."

She unwrapped her arms from around him, but took his hand in his before she walked with him to the kitchen. When she got to the fridge, she let go of his hand and took out the package of chicken. "Beckett, if you do change your name, I'm still going to call you Beckett."

"Too confusing?"

"No, because I do love calling you Beckett. It reminds me that the detective that came to my book launch party all those years ago, to question me about a murder, is my wife. I never thought that I would actually have the chance to call you my girlfriend, let alone my wife. Now, we've grown, and I can call you my wife, my partner, my always."

She smiled at him. "I'd kiss you right now, but I haven't washed my hands yet from this chicken." With that, he got the hint and leaned in to kiss her. She smiled against his lips before she placed the last piece of their chicken on the pan.

Castle started to chop up some vegetables and fruit, to put them in their salad, and Kate put some water in the tea kettle to make some instant mashed potatoes. She would have made the real thing, but Castle had tried to make a clock out of their last few potatoes. She wasn't sure why he tried it with three potatoes though...well she wasn't sure why he tried it in the first place. When the water boiled, she turned off the burner. As she poured it into the bowl, she spoke. "How about Beckett-Castle?"

He smiled as he placed down the knife he was using to cut the carrots. "It's perfect." He placed the salad bowl onto the table and then went to go get a bottle of wine and two glasses. As he brought them to the table, he had a thought. He wasn't sure if he wanted to speak it or not, considering he didn't want to think that he was rushing her into anything. However, he knew if he didn't voice it, it would be in the back of his mind. "What about when we have kids?"

She turned her attention from placing the chicken onto their plates to him. "What about it, Castle?"

"What last name will they have?"

She didn't hesitate. "Castle. Definitely Castle."

He smiled at her before he made his way over to her. "Thank you." He pressed a kiss to her lips before he helped her bring their dinner to the table.

"You don't have to thank me, babe." She placed her plate down, where she usually sat. "Besides, Beckett-Castle would be a pain for them to fill out in those bubbles on standardized tests."

He laughed. "Already thinking of our children. You're going to be a great mom someday, Katherine Beckett-Castle." He pressed a soft kiss to his lips before he turned his attention to their dinner.

* * *

He was sleeping already when she headed back into his office. She knew that she should be sleeping too, considering she was on call starting at 3am, but she couldn't sleep until she did this. She looked at the name 'Kate Castle' and smiled. It looked right this time. She knew she told him Beckett-Castle, but she was going to keep it as Kate Castle. Like he said, she would always be Beckett. Nothing would never change that.


	3. C

**C** astle

He had gotten this award a few times now, but that didn't mean that each time he wasn't still nervous about making his speech. The first time he had received this award, it was the year him and Kate had gotten married. Now, they were married for ten years. They had two sons (twins) and a daughter in those ten years. Kate had become the senator of New York and he started writing more than just mystery novels, although those were still his favorite. He ended the Nikki Heat series two years ago, since he wanted to focus on other things and his family. He didn't kill her off, no he did that once before with his main character and he couldn't bare killing off a character that was based on his wife.

He looked in the mirror, as he straightened his tie, and saw Kate coming out of their bathroom in the reflection. She was wearing this beautiful black gown. It had lacy sleeves and a v-neck line. It didn't show too much, but just enough to drive him crazy.

"Wow," he said before he turned around and looked at her. "How is it after all these years, you grow more and more beautiful?"

She smiled as she walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Cause my husband's eye sight is going," she teased slightly. She pressed a kiss to his lips before he could say that he didn't need the glasses that his doctor prescribed him. "You ready for tonight?"

"Well, I have my lovely wife here and I have my speech in my pocket. Alexis and my mother are going to meet us there and the kids, I'm sure, are having a blast at their sleepover with their grandpa, so I think I'm more than ready. I was hoping that your dad would join us, but I can't really say I blame him. I'd rather build a blanket fort and roast marshmallows with our kids."

"Can you give me a little preview of your speech?"

"Katherine Castle, since when have you've been one for spoilers?"

"Since your last speech you made, when you thought you were on a Comedy Central roast."

"Alright, that might not have been my best speech, but I was trying something new."

"Apparently." She sat down on the edge of the bed. "Let me hear it, Castle."

He took out the fold piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. He looked at his wife before he started speaking. "I have made speeches like this many times, and I'm thankful for every award I have won in the past. However, I'd give up all the awards if it meant I was destined to spend another lifetime with my wife. It's no secret that I changed my middle and last name. I don't know why I picked the last name, Castle. That was, until I met my wife. I wanted to be her fortress, the one that she would go to when she needed to feel safe, the one that would protect her from harm. Even though she was a detective and was much more experienced with a gun than I was, I still wanted to protect her. Without my wife, I would have never had the inspiration to create the character Nikki Heat. Shadowing her partners Ryan and Esposito wouldn't have been the same, no offense to them of course. I wouldn't have expanded my writing to other works without her support and encouragement. She has been my strength, my heart, my joy, my inspiration, and my love for many years now and she will continue to be for many years to come. So tonight, this award goes to my wife, Katherine Castle. I love you. Always."

She got off the bed as she saw him folding up the speech. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. She let him know how much she loved him in her kiss as she parted his lips with her tongue, exploring every inch of his mouth before tangling her tongue with his. She knew that if she continued to kiss him like that, they'd never leave. However, she knew that one kiss wasn't going to hurt or make them late. She angled her head to deepen their kiss and as much as she wanted to run her fingers through his hair, she refrained. She only broke their kiss when the need to breathe became present.

He rested her forehead against hers. "I take it that's better than the roast speech?"

She laughed. "Yes, Castle. Much better. I love you, Richard Castle."

"I love you too and I meant every word."

"I know you do. I know whatever you write down, you always mean, especially if it's about me."

"When did you first figure that out?"

"Hmm, probably after the first dedication to me. I had an idea, but then the rest just made it more concrete."

"Didn't convince you with my quotes about you in that interview I did?"

"Nope. Just thought you were trying to get into my pants."

"Which I was, but that wasn't the intention of that interview. The sexual innuendos, that was me trying to get into your pants. If you don't believe me, I can prove it." He waggled his eyebrows.

She laughed before she kissed him lovingly. "Come on, Mr. Castle, you can get in my pants later. You have a speech to make and an award to accept. You make me very proud to be your wife."

She unwrapped her arms from around his neck and took his arm. "I'll be holding you to that and you make me very proud to be your husband. Before we go though, promise me that when you hear this speech, you'll pretend it's like the first time you're hearing it."

She smiled. "Oh don't worry, no matter how many times I hear you speak or read your words, it feels like the first time."

"Is that why the binding on Nikki Heat is wearing?"

"No, but that's why the binding on James Patterson's Zoo is wearing."

He grumbled. "That's not nice, Beckett."

She smiled before she opened the door to the loft. "I love you."

"I love you too...but keep those teasing comments to a minimum. Patterson might hear them and want to steal you away from me."

"That would never happen. After all, I am a one writer girl."

He smiled. "I know. And I love you even more for it."

They closed the door and walked towards the elevator. Kate glanced over to Castle and just looked at him for a bit. She really was proud of her husband. She knew that was something that would never change, just like she was never not going to be proud to have him as her husband.


	4. D

**D** ick Coonan

She had shot him, the man that killed her mother. She couldn't let Dick Coonan take another person from her. She couldn't let him kill Castle. It was either find out who killed her mother or save Castle. She knew that she would get that information eventually, she hoped, but she would never get another Castle. She still tried to revive him, even though when she shot him, she went for the kill. She wasn't going to give up...that was until she felt Castle's hand on her shoulder. She knew it was his way of saying that there was no use and that he was gone.

Kate started to cry and she leaned against Castle. She tried not to get the blood that was on her hands on anything, but she was pretty sure she stained his shirt a bit. She knew that Castle wouldn't care. He had plenty of shirts, but she knew that even if he didn't he still wouldn't mind. He just wanted to make sure that she was okay. He helped her up from the floor and walked her to the bathroom. She was perfectly capable of walking, but he wanted to make sure she didn't break down before she got to the bathroom. He told her that he would head downstairs to get the spare clothes she had in her locker. She gave him the combination and he left her to wash up.

She locked the bathroom door behind her, not wanting anyone to come in while she was washing the blood away from her hands. The whole precinct saw (if not heard) what happened, so she knew they wouldn't be bothering her anyways. She still wanted to take the precaution. She turned on the water, both the hot and the cold, before she put her hands underneath the water. She let the blood wash from her hands before she pumped some soap onto them, to clean the rest of the blood off of her. She grabbed a paper towel, letting it get wet a bit, before cleaning off the knobs of the sink. She then turned the water off and grabbed another paper towel to dry her hands off. She moved her hands to her jacket, taking it off and inspecting it to see if any blood had stained it. She didn't see any and placed it on the heater, next to the window. She was about to take off her shirt, but then she heard the knock on the door.

"Kate, it's me. I have your clothes."

She unlocked the door and took the clothes from Castle. "Thank you."

"I'm going to head home to change. I'll be back to give my statement."

She nodded before she closed the door. Again, she locked it behind her. She then began to change into her clean clothes. When she was changed, she looked at herself in the mirror. She stood there, just looking at herself and taking everything in, for a few more seconds before she walked out and headed back to her desk. She didn't make eye contact with anyone as she walked. She sat down and began filling out the paperwork. As she did so, she was thinking about her mom.

She first started thinking about what her mother must have felt when she first laid eyes on Coonan. Did she see him? Did she see him walk away from her? Did she say anything to him or did he say anything to her before he killed her? Then she thought about all the good times that she had with her mother, like how they went ice skating a few days before she died, how she stayed home and watched Temptation Lane with her when she had her tonsils taken out, and the times where her dad was on business and it was just the two of them eating blueberry pancakes with lots of chocolate syrup and whipped cream on Sundays.

Her thoughts then went to Castle. She shot Coonan to make sure that Castle lived. If she had to go back to do it again, she would do the same thing. She would save him time after time. Her mother's case meant a lot to her, but Castle meant a lot to her too...more than she was willing to admit out loud. She was starting to fall in love with him and that scared her. She wasn't ready to say that out loud, but she was finally admitting it to herself. Since Castle had become her partner, her job had become more fun. She herself changed. She became less all about the job to letting her hair down once in awhile. She didn't let her hair down like she did in high school, but her life became closer to what it was like before her mother was murdered.

Kate was interrupted from her thoughts when Castle sat down next to her desk, in the chair that had now become his. She looked over at him and saw that he had a bag of food.

"I'm not sure what you would be in the mood for, so I got us some Italian, Thai, Chinese..."

She smiled at him. Only he would go home to change his clothes and come back with food for them. That was one of the things she loved about him. She took the container that had the food that appealed to her the most. She didn't say anything, just ate her food...that was until she couldn't take Castle staring at her.

"Castle, the staring thing...still creepy."

"Sorry, I just...I'm sorry that..."

She cut him off, knowing what he was going to say. "Don't be. I'll figure out who hired to put a hit on my mother some day, just not today. If I had to go back and do it again, I'd do the same thing. And if you tell anyone what I'm about to say there's going to be another shooting. I've gotten used to you pulling my pigtails. I have a hard job, Castle. And having you around, makes it a little more fun."

He smiled at her. "I'm glad to hear that. You make my job a little more fun too you know. Before you, I didn't get to do all this fun police work."

"Yet you still won't do the paperwork."

"Well that's not the fun part. Plus, no one is going to read a novel about how to fill out paperwork."

"Touche."

They ate their dinner in silence, other than a little small talk and the noise from the rest of the precinct. She threw the empty containers and chopsticks into the trash. He was about to leave, but she stopped him.

"Hey, Castle." He turned around to face her. "We should do this again some time. Hopefully over better circumstances."

He gave her a smile. "It's a date."

 _AN: I always thought that this was the episode where Kate knew there was something more between her and Castle, so that's what inspired this chapter. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for all the reviews. I'll be posting another chapter Monday (as long as everything goes according to plan). For updates, you can follow me on Twitter._


	5. E

_AN: This chapter sort of goes with the 'Always' chapter, but you didn't have to read it in order to read this one...although, you should ;) Enjoy and thanks for the reviews so far!_

 **E** verything

She was feeling a bit uncomfortable tonight, so she wasn't sleeping...which meant neither was he. She sat up in bed, resting against the headboard as she watched T.V. She had her hand on her stomach, as if to help tell their baby to calm down and let her sleep. Thankfully, she didn't have a big day tomorrow, but she still had to go to work. He placed his hand over hers, as to help their baby get the message...that and he wanted contact with his wife. There were some nights where she didn't want him touching her. He hated those nights. Not because he knew that the chance of naked Twister was definitely off the table, but because he couldn't hold her in his arms when he fell asleep. She'd just give him a look that said, "Don't you dare touch me. You're the one that did this to me." He was not looking forward to the looks that she would give him when she was further along.

She growled as she looked down at her stomach. "Baby, please move, so mommy can sleep."

He laughed. "Kate, I don't think that they know what you're saying to them."

"Shut up, Castle," she groaned as she turned the T.V off and sunk back into bed.

"You don't want to know if Tamala picks Donny or Randy to be her fiancee?!"

"Castle, I didn't even want to watch this. You're the one that said you had something saved on your DVR. The Bachelorette wasn't what I had in mind."

"I'll just have to watch it in the morning when someone is at work."

"Thank you." She rested her head against his shoulder, hoping that maybe if she moved onto her side that the baby would move.

He kept his hand on her growing stomach, moving his thumb back and forth across the cloth of her, well his, oversized t-shirt. "Maybe we can think of some names while we wait for this little one to move?"

She smiled. "Okay...did you..."

"Cosmo."

"No."

"Ok, we're having a girl so I see your point...Cosma."

"No."

"But Beckett..."

"No. I want to name our baby something meaningful. Something special."

"Cosmo is special."

"Really? What about Cosmo or Cosma makes you think about our lives together?" He was silent. "Exactly."

"What were you thinking then?"

She was silent for a bit. "I don't know. Something that means...everything."

"Everything?"

"Yea or maybe Everly...that's probably the closest thing to everything that we're going to get."

He laughed as he tightened his arms around her. "Why everything, Mrs. Castle?"

"Cause that's what this little one is going to be. She's going to be our everything. Just like we tried to look for a name that meant Always." She looked at him. "Plus, her daddy is my everything and I know she's going to have some qualities that you sure have."

He grinned. "What qualities are you hoping for?"

"Your eyes, your patience, your heart, your ability to not to take things too seriously sometimes, and your ability to take really quick showers so we don't have to wait too long for her to get ready."

He laughed. "Well, I'm hoping she has your eyes and your heart, so I might have to fight you on that."

"What other qualities are you hoping that she has?"

"From you? Your strength, how you carry yourself, your bad ass persona, being able to scare someone with just a look, and your fingers."

"My fingers?"

"Your fingers might be small, but they're perfect." He took her hand, that wasn't on her stomach, and kissed her hand.

She leaned in and gave him a soft kiss. "She moved."

He brushed his thumb against her stomach. "Hopefully, she keeps put for the rest of the night. Get some sleep, Kate. Just in case she wakes up again."

She snuggled into him more and closed her eyes. "Night, Castle. I love you."

"I love you too." He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "You're my everything too, Kate. You always will be." He brushed his thumb against her stomach once more. "You too, peanut. And trust me, you're going to know that...even if we name you Cosma."

"Which we won't be naming her," Kate mumbled.

"How about Cosmica?"

"Goodnight, Castle."


	6. F

_AN: Here's the first M Chapter, so if you're not here for these chapters, wait till the next one. I didn't write too many M chapters, since I didn't want to make this just smut, but there are a few. I'm glad that you've been enjoying these chapters so far._

 **F** uck

He loved doing this to her. He loved being able to do this to her now. He had dreams about what it would be like, to tease her, to taste her, to kiss her, to make her scream his name when she reached that point of no return. They had been intimate for the first time about five months now and he still loved doing this. He knew he always would.

He had two of his fingers inside of her and his mouth was pleasuring her clit. He hummed against her, flicked his tongue against the sensitive skin, and of course sucked. The moans that were coming from her was what he was going for, but there was something else that he was going for as well. What he was going for was something she did only a few times since they've been together. He knew that she always enjoyed and felt pleasure when they were intimate, but when she did this, he knew that she was really enjoying herself.

One of her hands were in his hair, as if she was holding him there. She knew that he wasn't going to go anywhere until he got exactly what he wanted from her. Her other hand was gripping the sheet that was beside her, wanting to hold onto something besides his hair. Her legs were draped over his shoulders and he could feel her legs twitch each time he hummed against her clit.

He made sure to keep the pace of his fingers slow at first, much like how he sucked her sensitive skin. He didn't want this to be quick. No, he wanted to make sure that his girlfriend was very satisfied with the multiple orgasms he had planned on giving her tonight. They had just gotten home from a long case, took a few weeks to solve, and he wanted her to relax. He wanted to get rid of any tension that she may have been still feeling. He always wanted to make sure Kate felt like her normal self, even before they were together. Now, he got to do that in the more pleasurable and delicious ways.

Which is exactly what he was doing now. Even though he loved it when she pleasured him with that talented mouth of hers, he loved pleasuring her more. He was never that type of guy before her. Sure, he wasn't someone that demanded anything or pressured any of the women that he was with to do something they didn't want to do. However, he looked forward to them pleasuring him more. He would return the favor, but it was never like how it was with Kate. He made sure to take his time, made sure to touch every spot on her body, and made sure she knew just how much in love he was with her.

Of course, he proved how much in love with her he was in other ways too and not just when they were intimate like this. She proved that to him too. Even though she hadn't said the words yet, which he was getting a little impatient about, he knew that she loved him with her actions. He wasn't going to rush her to say the words, but he would admit he was impatient to hear them. He knew if he pushed though, he would get nowhere. He just had to wait for Kate Beckett to be ready, just like he waited for her to show up at his door and kiss him like she had. That night wasn't what he had expected when Kate finally gave into her feelings for him, but it was definitely a night to remember. He would say that he wouldn't change a thing, but he could have done without the fight that they had and the part where she almost died.

He wasn't thinking about that now though. No, he was just focused on giving his girlfriend an orgasm. Castle started moving his fingers in and out of her faster and harder and also sucked on her harder. The loud moan that escaped her told him that she was enjoying the change of pace. That and her fingers pulled his hair slightly and they grabbed more of the sheet that she was gripping. He knew that he had her and that it wasn't going to be too much longer until Kate Beckett had her orgasm. He was going to enjoy every second until she did and he planned on making her feel the same way.

He flicked his tongue against her sensitive skin a few times in a fast pace, which also caused a moan from her, and hummed against her before he started sucking a little faster. Her legs twitched and her hips started to buck. That told him right away that she was even closer than he thought and that he was going to get that one word, the word that drove him crazy, escape her lips before she had her orgasm.

He picked up the pace of his fingers, knowing that that would bring her over the edge. A louder moan escaped her and then, then it happened.

"Fuck," she moaned out as she had her orgasm. "Castle!"

He loved hat she screamed his name, but he loved that fuck better. He released her clit from his mouth, knowing that she was going to be sensitive, but he kept his fingers going in and out of her. He had slowed down his movements, but he wanted her to enjoy her orgasm for as long as she could. He watched the way her chest moved up and down, how her fingers still gripped the sheet next to her. He slowed down the pace of his fingers until he finally stopped.

He brought his fingers to his mouth and sucked them clean. He let a groan escape her lips He then moved and let his tongue clean her, which caused another moan to escape her. He was tempted to try and make her have another orgasm, using just his mouth this time, but he refrained. Instead, he trailed kisses up her body and didn't stop until he reached her lips, pressing a soft kiss to her perfect lips. He really did love kissing her. He knew that was something that was never going to change. As much as he loved doing what he just did and being intimate with her, if he could only kiss her for the rest of his life, he would be content with that. Just as long as he got to kiss her, let her know how much he loved her through his kisses, he'd be just fine.

She slowly opened her eyes when she felt him pull away, giving him a soft, satisfied, smile. "God, Castle..."

He smiled at her. "I love it when you scream my name in bed, but I love it more when I get you to say..." He lowered his head, letting his lips barely touch hers, before he spoke in that low tone that drove her crazy. "...fuck in bed."

She smiled wider and wrapped her legs around his waist. "Mmm..."

He chuckled. "Not saying much, huh, Beckett?" He moved to place a nipping kiss to her neck before looking back down at her.

She gave him a look, something that said, "Shut up, Castle" and "Yea, you might be right," before she bucked her hips up into his, making him groan. It wasn't a hard buck, but it was enough to drive him crazy and get her point across. "You were saying, Castle?"

"You're right. There's no need to talk much." He moved back to her neck and placed a few more nipping kisses to her skin before looking back down at her. "Not when actions speak so much louder than words." They both smiled at one another before he leaned in and kissed her passionately.


	7. G

**G** odparents

Kate smiled as she looked down at their little bundle of joy in her arms. She was perfect as she just looked up at her mother and her father. Her eyes were already so blue, which she hoped meant that she would inherit Castle's eyes. Kate was in love with this little girl, she had been since they found out she was pregnant. Now it was real though. Their daughter was here, in her arms, just looking up at them. She used her thumb to brush their daughter's soft skin of her cheek.

"Castle, she's perfect."

He smiled. "Takes after you." He pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head. "I love you. You did such a great job, Kate."

She looked up at him and smiled. "I love you too." She had been yelling at him only a few hours before, telling him that he was never allowed to touch her again and a few other words that weren't to be repeated now that their daughter was born. Now that labor was over with though and they had their little girl, she loved him again. They shared a soft kiss before their attention was turned back to their daughter. They just watched her, in awe of her, until she yawned and fell asleep in Kate's arms. Even though Kate was reluctant to let their daughter leave her arms, they carefully placed her down and Castle then sat down on the side of the bed with his wife. He wrapped his arms around her, the best he could. He didn't want to hurt her or make her uncomfortable.

"You know, we probably should figure out who's going to be her godparents." With their line of work, especially hers, it was better to be safe than sorry. They had sort of talked about who could be the godparents to their daughter, but it was never a definite answer of who they wanted.

"Lanie would probably kill us if we don't say her...but there's Alexis."

He wrapped his arm around her a little tighter. "Alexis has the big sister role though, so Lanie might really kill us if Alexis has two titles."

Kate let a small laugh escape her. "True...but I'm sure our little one is going to call Lanie, Aunt Lanie. And if not, Lanie will make her."

He chuckled. "I have no doubt about that. Maybe if we think of the godfather, we can pick between Alexis and Lanie."

"Javi or Kevin?"

"Kevin."

"That was quick."

"Well, he has Sarah Grace, so we know he knows how to handle our little peanut over there...Plus Javi wouldn't even hold Sarah Grace until she was almost 5 months old."

"What about Jenny?"

"Jenny as the godmother?" She nodded. "Well, it would make sense, but again Lanie..."

"Yea." She was silent for a bit. "So Lanie and Ryan?"

"I'm sure the both of them will be very happy and hopefully Lanie doesn't kill us so she can have our little one to herself."

Kate rolled her eyes and looked at their daughter beside her. "I just want the best for her."

"She will. We'll make sure of that and even when we're gone, we'll make sure of it by leaving her in good hands if god forbid something happens to us. Lanie and Ryan will do a great job and will make sure that she accomplishes all her goals in life."

She gave him a soft smile before resting her head against his chest. "Hopefully, she won't have to experience life without us for a very long time." Kate knew what it was like to lose her mother and she didn't want her daughter to experience that feeling either. Not until she was well ready to leave this earth. She hoped the same would happen for Castle as well. She knew that her husband was safer than she was, but that didn't mean that things didn't happen. He could be shadowing her one day and something could happen. She shook that thought from her head, not wanting to think about that, especially when their daughter was just born and it was a happy occasion. "Do you think we could give Ryan and Lanie a test, when we need a night of sleep?"

He laughed. "Oh, using the godparents to catch up on sleep if our peanut keeps us up at night? I like the way you think, Mrs. Castle." He leaned in a stole a quick kiss.

She smiled against his lips. "Well, we could do other things besides sleeping," she said as she bit her bottom lip.

He growled. "Behave, Mrs. Castle. We can't do that until you're healed. As much as I would love to do that, hurting my wife is something that's not on my to do list...ever." With those words, his arms wrapped a bit tighter around his wife.

"I wasn't talking about now, although I'm very glad to hear that you don't want to hurt me...not that I didn't know that already. Maybe in a few months when giving up our daughter for the night doesn't sound like torture...that or the desire for my husband is just too much not to give into." She was tempted to use that seductive tone that drove him crazy, but she didn't want to start something that they couldn't finish.

"I'll make sure to wear every single blue shirt I own starting as soon as you're given the all clear."

"Or no shirt at all."

"That's what I'm hoping you wear."

She laughed as she shook her head before she closed her eyes. "You're probably going to get yelled at for being in bed with me, you know."

"It's worth the risk." He moved one of his hands, so that he could run his fingers through her hair. He knew this relaxed her and he knew that she was exhausted. He just hoped that she let herself sleep. He would get their daughter if she woke up. "They really should make two people hospital beds, that way they wouldn't have to get mad at me."

"Maybe they'll invent it by the time we have another." She was silent for a few seconds before she moved just a little closer to him, getting herself comfortable. "Don't move...k?"

He smiled. "I'm not going anywhere...that is unless our little girl wakes up."

"Thank you, Castle."

"For what?"

"For already being such a great father to her and for being a great husband to me."

"Always."


	8. H

**H** ang on

She crawled over to him, after shooting the man who they thought was dead and was on their side. She laid next to him and took his hand in his before placing her other hand over the bullet wound. "Castle..."

"I'm right here, Kate...I'm right here." He gave her a slight squeeze to her hand. He had to reassure the both of them that they were going to make it through this.

"We're going to die here aren't we?"

"No, no, sweetheart...we're going to get out of here. Mother or Alexis will be back soon..."

"They're out shopping...your mother could take hours."

He would have laughed at that if him and his wife weren't currently bleeding out on the floor of their kitchen. "I don't think I can get up to get the phone. Do you think he has his phone?"

"I don't want to leave you."

"Kate, I'm not going anywhere. Go check to see if he has a phone." He used the strength he had to bring their hands to his lips, placing a soft kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"Castle, don't say that...that means you want that to be the last thing I hear...we're going to be fine." She started crawling over to Caleb. "Castle..."

"I'm okay, Kate. I'm right here..."

"Keep talking..."

"What's worse, this or the time we were trapped in the freezer?"

"Not...what...I...meant." She got over to Caleb's body and found that he had a phone in his pocket. "Castle...I have it." There was silence. "Castle..." Silence still. She turned the phone on and pressed the emergency button before crawling back over to Castle. "This is Captain Beckett...I need help...my husband and I...we've been shot..." She got to Castle. "Babe..." She got to where she was on top of him. "Castle, stay with me...help is coming."

"Kate..."

"That's it, Castle...hang on...hang on for me, babe...,"She felt her eyes starting to close.

He brought his hand up to her face. "Can't loose you either. Hang on..." His hand slipped from her face.

"Castle...I love you." Her eyes closed and her head fell to his chest.

"Kate...no...Kate...stay with me."

"I love..."

"That's it, sweetheart...Keep talking."

"Freezer...worse..."

"Why?"

"I know...you love me...and I know...you know I love you."

"I knew then...have a feeling you did too."

A small smile graced her face. "I'm sorry..."

"For what?"

"This...I should have..."

"Shhh...it's okay..."

There was a knock on the door. "Police!" The door was then kicked down and cops and paramedics came running in. "Captain Beckett, Castle, can you hear me?"

She moved her hand, but then her eyes closed and everything went black.

"Kate..."

"Hang on, Captain. Castle, can you move at all?

He went to speak, but then the world went black for him too.

* * *

"Kate...," was his first word that was spoken.

"Easy, Castle. You're in the hospital. You were shot," Ryan put his hand on his shoulder to prevent him from shooting up. He didn't want Castle to rip open the stitches and hurt himself even more.

He remembered being shot, he remembered laying on the kitchen floor, and he remembered the police coming in. He would of told Ryan that he remembered, but he had more important things on his mind. "Where's Kate?"

He tilted his head to the hospital bed next to him.

She gave him a soft smile and a small wave. "Hi, Castle." She extended her hand to him and he gladly reached over to take it.

"Kate," he sighed in relief. He was more than relieved that they were both here, both alive.

"I'll leave you two alone." Ryan left the room, giving them some privacy.

Kate looked over to Castle, when she felt his hand slip from hers, and saw that he was getting up from the bed. "Castle, don't get up."

"I'm getting up, Kate."

"Castle..." He got up and made his way over to her. He said, with his eyes, for her to scoot over. She did and he laid down next to her. "Castle, this isn't..."

"I know, but I need to be close to my wife. I need to just hold you, to let us both know that it's okay...that we're alive." He leaned in and placed a kiss to the top of her head. That's when he heard her start to cry.

"Castle...I lost the baby."

He moved a bit to look down at her, wanting to make sure he heard her right. "What?" She didn't tell him that she was pregnant. Did she know?

"We were pregnant, Castle...I didn't know...they told me when I woke up...and...they didn't make it. Rick..."

He pulled her as close as he could to him, without hurting her or himself, and rested his head against hers as she buried her head into the crook of his neck. "I'll kill him, Kate. I'll..."

"Shhh, Castle. Just...hold me."

He pressed another kiss to the top of her head. "Don't worry, I'm not letting go. I'm never letting go."

 _AN: I hope none of you hate me for this. If it makes you feel any better, if were to have made this chapter into a full story, they still would have had their three kids. I still hope you enjoyed it. Thank you for the reviews/favorites. It means a lot :) See you on Tuesday for another update!_


	9. I

_AN: Thank you to all that have tweeted me, expressing how you want the last chapter into a longer fic. I'm thinking about it, so it may or may not happen. Also, I had to delete a guest review. I don't mind if you don't like a chapter, but I will delete things that say "This is stupid." If you tell me why it's stupid, your review will be kept. Constructive criticism is one thing, being mean is another. Thank you to the rest of you that have left reviews saying that you're enjoying these one shots. I'm glad you are because they've been fun to write. Enjoy!_

 **I** love you

"Ti amo."

"Ti amo."

"Very good, Rick. Next language," his computer said and put a check mark next to Italian before moving down to French. " Je t'aime"

"Jay t'amie"

"Try again. Je t'aime"

"Je t'amie."

"Good. Next language." It put a check mark next to French before it went to Japanese." Watashi wa, anata o aishitemimasu"

"Huh?"

He heard the laugh come from the door way. He looked up to see his wife leaning against the door frame, giving him a smile. He wasn't sure how long she had been there for, but he had a feeling that it wasn't for too long. "I thought you knew some Japanese, Castle? From that T.V show you used to watch?"

"That was Chinese and I only know some." He paused the program, wanting to give his wife his full attention. That and if he didn't start speaking it would tell him that it didn't get that and to repeat himself. "I thought you were going to be working late. Did you solve the case?"

"I thought so too, but we closed the case and I said, I wanted to save the paperwork for another day to spend some extra time with my handsome husband."

"You should have taken a page from my book and let Ryan and Esposito do it." He moved his chair, a bit, so she would have enough room to sneak in between the desk and the chair.

"Yes, but unlike you, they might stick me with doing paperwork for the next case and that could be longer." She walked over to him and placed a soft kiss to his lips before taking a seat on his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck, making sure that she was secured in his lap. His arms wrapped around her waist, to make sure that she was secured as well. "What are you doing anyways?"

"I'm trying to learn some new languages."

"Oh? You know, I could help you. You don't have to use this program, especially if you want to learn Russian."

"As much as I would love your help, I need to do this by myself. Even though the idea of you as the teacher and myself as the student is arousing. Especially with the thought of how you can punish me if I don't hand in my homework," he waggled his eyebrows

She rolled her eyes. "Why is that?"

"Why is it arousing? Well..."

She cut him off. "Not that, Castle. Why do you have to do this by yourself?"

"Oh...It's a secret."

"A secret?"

"Mhm, a secret."

"You're not planning on booking a trip somewhere are you? Cause, babe..."

He quickly reassured her. "No, don't worry. It's not a trip somewhere, but this is for any future trips we may go on...that and the secret." Even though he would love to book a surprise trip for him and Kate right now, he knew that she was busy with work and that she just couldn't jump on a plane and go. She had to make sure that she had vacation time, that no one else was taking a vacation the same time she wanted to, and all that stuff that Castle found rather boring.

"Is there a way...," she moved to place a few nipping kisses to his neck. "...where I can convince you to tell me what this secret is?" She kept placing those nipping kisses to his neck, knowing that it drove him crazy when she paid attention to his neck.

He tilted his head to the side. "As much as I would enjoy that, I'm not giving anything away."

She stopped those kisses and pulled her lips away from his skin. "Oh come on, Castle. That's not fair." A small pout graced her face.

He laughed before he placed a kiss to her pout. "You know, you're adorable?" He placed another kiss to her lips.

"Castle, come on. Give me a hint."

"You're the detective, use your detective skills." She gave him a playful glare before she attempted to get up from him. He stopped her though, wrapping his arms around her tighter and bringing her in closer. "Alright, I'll tell you. I don't want to learn every language, but I want to learn one saying in each language. Or at least I'm going to try."

"What's that?"

"I love you."

She smiled at him. "Why do you want to know how to say that in each language? You plan on sweet talking people to try and get free things?" She, of course, teased him.

He playfully rolled his eyes. "No." He moved a strand of hair to behind her ear. "That way, wherever we go, everyone will hear that I love you in their language."

She smiled. "Castle, that's so sweet, but you don't have to do that."

"I know I don't have to, but I want to. I want everyone to know that you have my heart and you always will."

She pressed a kiss to his lips. "I'm pretty sure that everyone is going to know that due to our actions."

"True, but I still want to do this."

"Well, in that case..." She pressed play. "I want to learn too."

He smiled. "Lets get started."


	10. J

_AN: Thank you to all for the reviews of the last chapter and pointing out a few errors. They have since been fixed (That's what happens when I edit without coffee). I also am sorry that this chapter is a day late. I had a busy day yesterday and didn't think I was capable of editing. I did tweet it out though and if I have something like that occur again I will tweet it (so follow me on twitter if you wish I follow back, of course). Anyways, enjoy!_

 **J** ack and Jill

He got into bed and pulled the covers up to his waist. "What if we name the twins Jack and Jill?"

"Castle, we are not naming our kids Jack and Jill. We don't even know if it's a boy and a girl. It could be two girls or two boys."

"True, but Jack and Jill is perfect!"

"How is that perfect for our kids?"

"Because it's our daughter's favorite story...it was Alexis's too."

"You do know it's their favorite because you act it out? Well at least Lily's. She loves it when you "bump" your head."

"How do you know that? It could just be a Castle trait."

"Because when you were in California last week, I read her that story and she said that it's not as good as when daddy tells it."

"Is that why you've been giving me the cold shoulder since I've been home?!" She didn't answer him. "Oh honey, Lily loves it when you read to her."

"Not as much as when you read to her."

He wrapped his arm around her, bringing her in close. "You want to bet?"

"I don't have to bet, I know."

He chuckled. "Kate, Jack and Jill is the only story that I read her, do you know why?"

"Because she likes it when you act it out."

"Yes, but that's the only story I can read her. Every time I try to read her something else, even if I act it out, she says that that's mommy's story and doesn't want me to read it."

She looked at him. "She said that?"

"She did. Jack and Jill is the only one she'll let me read her. The rest, those are all yours."

She gave him a soft smile. "What did you try to read her?"

"The three little pigs."

"She loves that one."

"Again, only when you read it."

She pressed a soft kiss to his lips, which he returned. "Thank you."

He let a small chuckle escape him. "For telling you that our daughter likes it when she reads to you? You're welcome."

"No, not that...well not just that. For letting me know that I'm a good mom."

He moved a bit so that he could look at her, but he made sure that his arms were still wrapped around her. "Katherine Beckett-Castle, you are a great mom even if our daughter didn't love it when you read to her. You are so good with her. You look after her, you make sure she's safe, you play with her, you cuddle her, you tuck her in at night. Kate, she loves you." He only used her full name when it was something serious. This was something serious. How could she doubt that she wasn't a good mom?

"You don't think she hates me because I'm not around during the day and that sometimes I have to leave on my day off or work long hours?"

"I know she's disappointed that her mommy doesn't get to stay home and play with her, but that doesn't make her love her mommy any less. And when you walk through that door, she runs to you and gives you the biggest hugs I've ever seen...well besides the hugs you give me when you get home."

She gave him a smile. "I do love her hugs. I love yours too. However, I love your kisses more. Those tell me how much you've missed me."

"Oh it does? Well, I'm very glad to here that." He leaned in and gave her a passionate kiss. He didn't waste anytime parting her lips with his tongue. His tongue explored every inch of her mouth before his tongue tangled with hers. She angled her head, to deepen their kiss, and let a moan escape her. It was muffled, but it still drove Castle crazy when he heard her moan.

Just as she was about to straddle his waist, she heard their daughter's tiny voice and the knock to the their door.

"Mommy!"

She pulled away from Castle. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

She opened the door and walked into their room. "Can I sleep with you and daddy? I had a bad dream."

"Come here sweet pea." Castle moved the covers so that their daughter could sneak into bed with them. She quickly ran over to her dad and got into their bed. She moved, so that she was in between both her parents. They both wrapped their arms around her.

"What was your bad dream about?"

"That Grams turned into a monster."

Castle laughed, which caused Kate to playfully hit his arm. He looked at her and she gave him a look before responding to their daughter. "Grams is not a monster. You want us to call her so you can see for yourself?"

"Oh, mother is doing a show tonight. She won't pick up. And if she forgot to put her phone on silent, then she'll really turn into a monster when she sees us."

"Tell me a story."

They looked at each other. "What story do you want to hear?"

"Jack and Jill."

Kate smiled, before moving a bit so she could lay down with Lily. "Take it away, daddy."


	11. K

**K** ryptonite

Everyone knew that Kate was his weakness, his kryptonite, and so did 3XK. He had kidnapped Kate and Castle was going crazy, trying to find out where his wife was. He should have gone with her instead of telling her that he was going to sleep in for a bit. He should have just gotten up and gone with her to the crime scene that supposedly Ryan had called her about. It wasn't Ryan that called her, it was 3XK. If he went with her, he would be with her. They wouldn't be safe, but at least he would be with her. They were stronger when they were together. He wasn't with her now though and it was killing him. He just wanted to hold her in his arms, let them both know that it was okay...even though it was far from okay.

They had very little contact with 3XK, but when Castle woke up, he had a video message from him sent from Kate's phone. They were currently running it, trying to see if there was anything that could pinpoint where he was. He was hoping that Ryan could find something, but 3XK was smart. He encrypted the file, so when it was transferred to their computer, it gave it a virus. It took some time to get the virus off their computer and to be able to play the video without any problems. He kept pacing outside of the office or back in forth in the break room. His mother came by, trying to get him to calm down and maybe try to get him to come home, but it didn't work. He was going to stay until they found something.

They finally did find something. They pinpointed his location to a warehouse and rushed over. He got in the back with Ryan and Esposito and prayed silently that they would find Kate there...alive. When they got there, they all seemed to be in sync as they got out of the car. Ryan went first, then Esposito, then Castle, and then a few other officers. Ryan kicked down the door and they turned a few corners. He saw a body in the middle of the floor...laying in a pool of blood.

"Espo, make Castle stand back!"

He quickly pinned Castle to the wall, but Castle fought back. "Ryan, is she in there!?"

He didn't answer him. He just walked into the room and carefully made his way over to the body. He knelt down and moved the hair out of her face, seeing that it wasn't Kate. "It's not her!" With that, Esposito let Castle go. Castle sank to the floor, happy that his wife wasn't dead in the other room, but still terrified because they had no other leads. Ryan inspected the body and saw an address freshly tattooed on her arm. "Espo, come in here!" They searched the address on his phone and saw that it was another abandoned warehouse. Ryan pulled Castle up from the floor and told him they had another address. This time, hopefully it was where Kate was.

They sped over to the address (even though it wasn't that far from where they were) and as soon as they got out of the car, the warehouse blew up.

"Kate!"

Esposito called for the fire department while Ryan went over to Castle, making sure he didn't do anything stupid like run into the burning building...even though he was tempted to run in there himself.

* * *

The phone call was a set up. There was a body, but she should have known that when Ryan and Esposito weren't there that something wasn't right. There was a body there though, so she had a job to do. She got out of the car and that's all she remembered. The next thing she knew, she was waking up in a warehouse, tied to a chair. 3XK had her phone and he was saying to her, "Say hi to Castle." Then, everything went black again. She remember that she hoped that wasn't a video asking him to trade himself for her. She knew she was his kryptonite...just like he was hers.

Now, she was awake. She was in the warehouse, just in a different room and not tied up. She was just on the floor. She moved her fingers and her toes. She felt a bit paralyzed in some areas of her body, but she was able to move...even though her body was saying no to that. She got up and inspect her surroundings. She would have tried the door, but she had a feeling that it was either going to be locked or it was going to be a trick. The window was her better option. She went to reach for the window, but her arm was killing her. She was going to have to find something in order to stand on.

She looked around and saw that there was a stool. Hopefully, it was sturdy enough. She picked it up, not wanting to make noise by dragging it across the floor, and moved it to where the window was. Even moving the stool was a task at this point. She tested it with one foot, before putting all her weight on it. Kate looked out the window, trying to see where she was. She saw that it was an empty parking lot and she heard sirens in the distance. Her vision was a little blurry and all she wanted to do was close her eyes, but she knew she had to get out of here.

"Castle..." She hoped that's who the sirens were anyways.

She opened the window and climbed out of it. It was a small window, so it took her a bit to get through it, that and the fact that her body was sore, especially her arm. She figured that's where he injected her with whatever was making her feel the way she was. Kate knew that it wasn't going to be this easy to get away, so she didn't waste time in finding somewhere safe. She hid behind the dumpster that she saw and heard the sirens coming closer. No sooner did she hear the sirens and the car doors open, she heard an explosion coming from behind her. She was too weak to get up and look. Whatever he gave her was starting to knock her out again. She tried to move her toes, but she couldn't this time around. She heard Castle call out her name and tried to speak, but she couldn't say his name loud enough.

"Castle..." She knew if she hit the dumpster, it would make some noise and would alert them. She hoped that they wouldn't just think it was a rat. She lifted her arm up and hit it, but it wasn't loud enough. She was going to be left here and Castle was going to think that she was dead. She saw that there was a can next to her and she thought maybe, just maybe, if she had enough energy to roll the can it would alert them to look over here. She took the can and used all her strength to roll it in the direction she had last heard their voices.

Esposito was the first one that noticed the can rolling to them. He looked in the direction of where the can came from and saw the dumpsters on the side. "Beckett!?" He knew it was a long shot, but crazier things had happened.

Castle looked where Esposito was looking and all three of them ran towards the dumpsters. When they got there, they saw her with her back against the dumpster.

"Kate!" Castle immediately pulled her into his arms, making sure that she was alive.

"Castle...," she whispered.

"It's okay, baby. I've got you. You're going to be okay."

"Can't...fight...much..."

"Shhhh, it's okay. Close your eyes, just not forever."

"Can't...get...rid of me...that..."

"Shhh, I know. I know." He picked her up into his arms and when the ambulance came, he placed her on the stretcher.

Kate couldn't see what 3XK had done to her. It wasn't entirely the medicine that he gave her that was knocking her out and making her weak. She had a busted lip, a black eye, a cut to her forehead, she cut her leg on some broken glass when crawling out of the window (she hadn't realized that she had broken some of the glass when opening the window), and her back was bruised. The paramedics saw and so did Castle. It broke his heart to see her like this, but she was alive. She was here and he wasn't going to leave her side.

 _AN: This is my iffy chapter. I had the idea, but I felt like my mind just couldn't figure out how to put my ideas into words. So I'm sorry if this chapter isn't the best. See you all on Tuesday for another update! :)_


	12. L

_AN: This is another M chapter, so if you're not here for that stop before they head off the dance floor. Enjoy and see you on Thursday for another update :)_

 **L** anie

It was the morning of Lanie and Esposito's wedding. Kate was putting on her maid of honor dress and pouted as she looked in the mirror. She looked huge. When Lanie had planned this wedding, Kate wasn't pregnant, so agreeing to a color that wasn't slimming wasn't a problem then. However, now, this blue made her look like a whale.

"Castle!"

He stepped out of the bathroom. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

Kate turned to face him with a pout on her face. "Castle, I look like a whale."

He chuckled before he wrapped his arms around her. "Sweetheart, you are anything but a whale. You look incredible."

"You're just saying that so I don't shoot you."

"You should know me better than that by now, Mrs. Castle. I always think you look incredible."

"So you're saying that you have a biased opinion and I probably do look like a whale?"

"I am not saying that. I am saying that I think my wife looks incredible, especially when she's carrying our baby girl."

She stepped out of his arms and looked over to the mirror. She placed her hand over her growing stomach. She was five months pregnant and everyone kept saying that she looked great, that she didn't look like she was even pregnant. However, she felt like a whale, especially today. She put her hair up and then down, then up again.

"Castle, do I look less like a whale with my hair up or down?"

He shook his head. "You don't look like a whale whether your hair was up or down. I prefer your hair down though. It's easier for me to run my fingers through it."

She gave him a soft smile before she let her hair fall again. "Need help with your tie?" He nodded and she walked over to him, helping him tie his tie. "I hope that Lanie and Espo's wedding goes better than our first attempt to get married."

"I hope so too. I don't wish that on anyone. Even though I don't really remember that time away from you, I don't want anyone to be put through what we had to go through. I still feel terrible about that day."

She put her finger to his lips. "Shhh, Castle. I don't blame you for any of that. I know it wasn't your choice to leave me that day and those three months. It's behind us now. We're here, we're married, we have a baby on the way."

He placed his hand in between them and on her stomach. "That we are. Right, Cosma?"

"Her name is not Cosma." She finished tying his tie. "Now, come on. We can't be late. It doesn't matter if I'm pregnant, Lanie will kill us."

* * *

They got to the church and since Kate was pregnant, her, Ryan, Jennie, and Castle were sitting down in the front pew.

"I know everyone's story is different and what works for some doesn't for others, but I'm glad our story isn't theirs. We waited four years to get together, but I'm glad we didn't break up multiple times to see what was right in front of us all this time," Castle whispered in her ear.

She rested her head against his shoulder. "I am too. We might have if we got together sooner than we did, but we took our time."

"And then took a little extra time."

She couldn't argue with that. "But it ended up for the best." She took his hand in hers and gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"It definitely did." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "I'll never trade my life with you. Not for anything."

"Neither will I, Castle." She placed a soft kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too."

They both heard a "Um hm," come from Lanie. She was giving them a look that said, "Get your lips off of each other, this is my wedding." If looks could kill, that one would have. They both gave her an apologetic look and didn't take their eyes off of Lanie or Esposito for the rest of the ceremony.

* * *

The rest of the ceremony was beautiful and so was the reception so far. Kate's hormones were making her emotional, so she did end up crying during the ceremony. Lanie came over to her and dragged her away from Castle, to steal a dance with her best friend.

"I'm glad that this time we were both involved in a wedding party, the wedding actually happened."

"You and me too, girl. Who would have thought that Javi and I would have ended up together after the break ups that we've been through?"

"We all had a pretty good idea. Just like you and everyone else had a pretty good idea that Castle and I would end up together."

"Kate, anyone with eyes could see that you two were going to end up together. How many suspects that you interviewed asked you two if you were a couple?"

"I didn't keep track."

"Exactly. How's baby doing?"

Kate smiled. "Besides playing soccer with my bladder, she's doing great."

Lanie touched her stomach. "Listen to Aunt Lanie little one, stop making mommy pee every five minutes." They both laughed before Lanie took her hand away. "I hope if Javi ever comes around that I'll look like you when I'm pregnant."

"I feel like a whale."

"Honey, you're anything but a whale."

"That's what Castle said."

"Well, for once, I agree with your husband."

"Well, I hope you agree with me on this too. Mind if I cut in?"

Lanie stopped dancing with Kate and turned around to see Castle standing there. Both women gave him a smile. "Go ahead, Castle." Castle surprised her and took her hand to dance with her instead of Kate's, which caused her to laugh. "Don't dip me, Castle."

"Don't worry, I won't. Did Kate ask you?"

"Ask me what?" She looked over to her side, where Kate was standing.

"To be godmother to this little one," Kate said as she put her hand on her stomach.

"Are you kidding!? That's the best wedding present you two could have given me. Of course!" She hugged the both of them. She let them go with a smile. "I'll leave you two to dance."

Castle took Kate's hand and pulled her in close. "I heard Lanie agrees with me that you don't look like a whale."

"Don't get used to her agreeing with her."

"Oh, I won't. But at least I know who to count on when my wife needs some convincing that she looks incredible when she doesn't believe me."

"Well, there are other ways you can convince me besides calling up Lanie," she gave him one of those seductive smiles.

"Oh?! Well then, Mrs. Castle. Lets go find a coat closet so I can make sure my convincing skills are up to par."

He took her off of the dance floor and headed outside of the dinning hall. "Do you know where a coat closet is?"

"No idea, but I'm sure we'll find one. Only bad thing is, it's the middle of August, so I don't think we're going to find it by someone putting their coat away."

"On the other hand, there's no reason for anyone to open that said coat closest," she said before she moved her hand into his pocket and brushed her fingers against his length.

He stopped her hand. "Katherine Castle, behave until we find that coat closet."

They walked down the stairs and it took a bit, but they found a coat closet. As soon as Castle shut the doors, Kate didn't waste anytime capturing his lips in a passionate kiss, which he of course returned. She didn't tease him, she just let her tongue part his lips and explored every inch of his mouth before tangling her tongue with his. He, gently, pushed her up against the wall and helped her wrap her legs around his waist. He made sure that he had a good grip on her, not wanting his wife to fall. She broke their kiss, when the need to breathe became too much, but he moved his lips to her neck. He placed nipping kisses to her sensitive skin, knowing it drove her crazy.

"Castle," she let a small moan of his name escape her as she tilted her head to the side.

Normally, he would make sure each patch of skin was touched in some way, but he knew they had to be quick. Lanie would notice if they were gone for too long. As he kissed down her neck, he moved her dress up a bit and moved his one hand to her panties. He let his fingers run over her, through the material, before he moved them aside and touched her clit. She let another moan escape her as he let his thumb rub against the sensitive skin. He felt how wet she was and knew that she was ready for him. He moved her hand from her panties and sucked off her juices from his fingers.

As he did so, her hands moved to his belt, undoing it with ease, along with the buttons and zipper to his pants. He then lowered his pants and his boxers, before he moved her panties aside once more. There was no teasing this time, he entered her and she let out another moan. He closed his eyes, preventing himself from letting out a groan of his own. After all these years, she still felt amazing. When he felt her bucking her hips into his, he made sure to buck his hips back into hers...only harder and he didn't stop after one buck. He made sure to keep the pace hard and fast.

She gripped onto his shirt, he had taken his suit jacket off a few hours ago, but she made sure it wasn't enough to rip it. She moved her hips with his, but as she came closer to her orgasm, her movements were a bit sloppy.

"Let go, Kate. I'm right behind you."

With that, she tilted her head back. She bit her bottom lip, as she had her orgasm, not wanting anyone to hear her screaming his name. Her eyes were closed, but she felt him biting the skin covering her collarbone and she knew he was preventing himself from doing the same thing. His movements slowed as both of them came down from their orgasm and he kissed the skin that he had bitten before moving his lips. When he stopped moving his hips, he pressed a soft loving kiss to her lips.

"I love you."

She smiled against his lips. "I love you too."

"Are my convincing skills still up to par?"

She smiled wider as his forehead rested against hers. "Definitely."


	13. M

**M** om

She had never done this before. No one that she was with, since her mother died, was special enough to meet her mother. A few met her dad, Will did, but they never met her mother. She thought that maybe they would think that this was silly, and even though she still felt that, she knew that Castle would never think that this was silly. She had told him about how she thought her mother would be here to help her pick out flowers, see her in her wedding dress, and that she would have loved Castle.

Well, a few days after she said that she had an idea...this idea. She was taking Castle to her mother's grave to meet her mother. She didn't tell him where they were going. She just told him that she wanted him to meet someone special to her. She had a feeling he knew what that meant, but he didn't say anything. He just said that he wanted to go and was looking forward to meeting this said person. If he didn't know then, he knew when she made the turn into the cemetery.

She drove to where her mother's grave was located and parked on the side. She turned off the car and didn't look over to Castle. She knew that if she did, she would give him the whole, "I know this is silly," speech and she didn't want that. She just unbuckled and got out of the car. By the time she got over to his side, he was out of the car and she led the way to her mother's grave. She stopped when they got there. She was silent for a bit, before she took Castle's hand in hers.

"Castle, I'd like you to meet someone special to me. This Johanna, my mom. Mom, I'd like you to introduce you to my fiance, who is also someone special to me, Rick Castle. Yea, mom, one of your favorites."

He smiled. "I'm one of her favorites?!"

She smiled softly. "You were. I told you that she would have loved you. Castle, I've never brought anyone here to meet my mom before. No one meant enough to me for me to introduce them to her without me thinking that they would laugh at me. Not till you."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder before he spoke to Johanna. "Well, Johanna, I definitely would have loved you too. I love your daughter more than anything and I can't thank you enough for bringing her into this world. I don't know what I would have done if your daughter didn't show up at my book launch party and question me about a murder. She is truly the most extraordinary woman I have ever met. I wish you were here in person, so you could join us when we say I do, but I know you'll be there in spirit. I know she wants you here too and I know she misses you every single day. I do wish I could have met you, but some day I have a feeling I will. Until then, I promise to take care of your daughter, to make sure that she's loved, to remind her to smile, to laugh, to love. I promise to keep her safe, to make sure that she's happy, and that she's well taken care of. I know she's going to do the same for me."

She leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek. "I will, Castle."

He smiled. "Shh, Beckett. I'm not done talking to your mom yet." He turned his attention back to her mother's grave site. "I also promise to make sure that when the day comes, when Kate and I have kids of our own, that we'll bring them here to meet their grandmother. I know Kate might be hesitant, but I'll make sure that you meet them."

"Them?"

He looked at her. "I was thinking two."

"Two kids?"

"Yea, maybe a boy and a girl, even though I know we can't control that."

"We'll stick to getting married first and then we'll figure out when it's a good time to have a kid."

"I'll hold you to that, Katherine Beckett."

She smiled before she turned her attention to her mom's grave. "I do miss you mom, but having Castle in my life has made things...well kind of like it was when you were alive. I smile like I used to and love like I used to. I let him in and my life got a little more fun again. Like Castle, I wish you were here to see us get married and help with the wedding, but you'll be there. Dad is doing good. He might not admit it, but he's excited for the wedding. He likes Castle and Castle likes him...even though Castle really doesn't have a choice cause he has to like dad." She looked over to him and smirked. "I love you, mom, and don't worry...all those things that Castle promised you I'm going to promise too...even bringing the kids here to meet you."

"See, you said kids."

She rolled her eyes. "This doesn't mean we're having more than one."

"The more you deny it, the more kids we'll have."

She gave him a look that said, "What kind of logic is that?!", but she saw that he was trying to hold back a laugh. "You're not funny, Castle."

They felt a breeze pass them by and he smiled. "I think your mom thinks I'm funny."

"No, she doesn't."

"Your dad thinks I'm funny."

"That's because you babble all the time."

"It's not my fault I get nervous around him."

They felt another breeze pass them by. "I guess mom agrees with that too." She looked at her mother's grave once more. "We'll be back soon, mom. I love you."

"I love you too, mom."

Kate smiled and they felt another breeze pass them before they started walking back to the car. He let her out of his embrace, that way she could walk to the driver's side. When she got into the car, he took her hand in hers.

"Thank you for bringing me here. It means a lot to me that you let me meet your mom."

She gave him a smile before she leaned over and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Thank you for meeting her and not thinking that talking to a grave stone was silly."

"Definitely not silly. We should come back here either before or after our wedding, let her hear our vows, show her some pictures."

She pressed another kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too...but lets get out of here because if we kiss anymore in this graveyard, we might be in our own horror movie."

She rolled her eyes before she started the car. She looked over, one last time, at her mom's grave. They'd be back and even though she wasn't looking forward to telling their kids what happened to her mother, she was looking forward to showing her mom just how much she learned from her. She would be just as amazing of a mom as her mother was and she couldn't wait for her to see that.


	14. N

**N** iece

She was nervous. They were baby sitting for the first time and she had no idea if they could do this. Well, she knew Castle could do this, but she didn't know if she could do this. Ryan and Jenny had a wedding to go to and they asked her and Castle if they could watch Sarah Grace. Before Kate could say yes or no, Castle said yes. So here they were, at the loft, waiting for three month old Sarah Grace.

Even though she wasn't crawling, Castle had baby proofed the loft, bought at least $100 worth of toys, two outfits for her, set up Alexis's old crib in their room, and made sure that there were plenty of Baby Einstein on the DVR. He was excited, obviously. She felt like he was being excited for the both of them while she was being nervous for the both of them. The doorbell rang and Castle practically ran out of his office, knowing it was their little house guest.

"Hey, Castle."

"Jenny, you look amazing."

She gave him a soft smile. "Thank you." She walked inside, with Sarah Grace in her car seat and Ryan following behind her. "Ryan has her diaper bag filled with all the things you'll need. Her blanket, her bottles, her formula, change of clothes, her favorite toy, her pacifier, diapers, wipes, bibs, and burping cloths. Thank you guys so much again for watching her."

Before Kate could speak, Castle interrupted. "It's our pleasure. You too have a great time and don't worry, we know how to contact you if we need to."

Jenny and Ryan smiled, both waving at their little girl. She was currently asleep, so they didn't take her out of the car seat. "You be a good girl for Aunt Kate and Uncle Rick. We love you. See you in the morning." With that, Jenny and Ryan left, leaving Kate and Castle alone with their daughter.

"How long do you think she'll sleep?"

"Hopefully not too much longer. I want to play with that one toy I got her."

She shook her head and took the bottles out of the diaper bag. She placed them on the counter and put the ones that were already made in the fridge. As she was about to move the diaper bag, she saw that Sarah Grace was starting to move in her car seat and sure enough, her eyes soon opened. Kate froze as they both looked at each other.

"Hi baby girl. Did you have a good nap?" She saw Sarah Grace's lip start to quiver. "Oh no, no don't cry." She walked over to her and took her out of the car seat before she could start crying. She held her in her arms and looked down at the little girl, who was again looking at Kate. "As I tell your Uncle Rick, starring is kinda creepy." That didn't stop the little one from starring at her.

"Well, look who's up." Kate turned around and faced Castle. "You look good with a baby, Beckett."

"Don't get any ideas, Castle. Wedding first, kids can wait."

"I'll remind you of that when we've been married for a year or two." He took Sarah Grace from her and held her in his arms. "Uncle Rick has this awesome new toy for you. We can sit you in this little swing that we bought just for you and you can play with it...but you have to share with Uncle Rick."

Kate rolled her eyes before she smiled as she watched him walk off with Sarah Grace. She thought that she would want to just let Castle play with her while she read a book or something, but Kate followed them. She headed into the room as he was putting her into the swing.

"Look at that. Aunt Kate wants to play with us too." Kate smiled and sat down on the floor next to him and next to the swing. "You know, Aunt Kate hasn't said it out loud, but she's nervous about watching you. I don't know why, she's great with kids. Some day, she'll see that when your cousins come into the world." He moved his hand and took hers, giving it a squeeze.

She gave him a soft smile and returned his hand squeeze. She hoped that he was right, hoped that she would be a good mother when that time came. She knew that Castle would be here to make sure that she was doing it right and to reassure her when she had doubts. He really was an amazing man.

Sarah Grace wasn't in a playing mood for long, since hunger took over her happy mood. Kate got her a bottle and took her out of the swing. She sat down in the chair that they had in their room and feed her. Castle just watched as she fed the little girl. Kate felt his eyes on her and looked at him.

"Like I told her, starring is creepy."

He smiled at her. "You really do look good with a baby, Kate, and I meant what I said to Sarah Grace. You're going to be an amazing mom. Our kids are going to be the luckiest kids in the world because they have a mom like you."

She motioned with her finger for him to come to her. When he did, she leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "And they're going to have an amazing father."

When Sarah Grace was about half way through, Kate took the bottle away from her to burp her. She wasn't sure exactly how to hold her, but Castle moved her hands to show her how to do it right. The little girl startled Kate when she let out a huge burp...which also prompted her to spit up.

"Castle, can you..."

"I'm on it!" He got the burp cloth out of the bag and cleaned up the spit up that was on Sarah Grace and on Kate's pant leg. "I'll get you a pair of sweat pants to change into."

The next time that Kate burped the little one, she made sure to have the burp cloth ready. Thankfully, this time she didn't spit up. Sarah Grace ended up falling asleep in Kate's arms and she transferred her into the crib. Castle got her blanket and placed it over her, also placing her favorite little toy next to her. It didn't make noise, it was a stuffed duck, but it was really soft. Much like her blanket. Kate changed into her sweat pants and Castle changed as well. They then headed out into the living room and sat down on the sofa.

"We'll hear her right?"

He smiled. "Yes, we'll hear her from here. She'll be fine."

"Good."

He placed a kiss to the top of her head. "You want to help me give her a bath later?"

"Are you going to teach her how to splash?"

"Maybe..."

"Then I'm going to have to make sure that I supervise or else Jenny and Ryan might never let us babysit again."

He smiled brightly. "Again? You sure about that?"

She snuggled into him more. "Yea. It will be good practice for when we have our own. Plus, I have a feeling she's going to love her Uncle Rick. We can't deny her that."

He laughed. "That we can't, but she's also going to want to spend time with her Aunt Kate, so we can't deny her that either."

"Good thing we're getting married, huh? Ryan and Jenny won't have to flip a coin to see who babysits."

He smiled. "I can think of a few other reasons, but yes, it's a very good thing we're getting married."

She let a yawn escape her. "We'll hear her if we fall asleep, right?"

He tightened his arms around her. "Don't worry, sweetheart, I can assure you we will. They might be small, but they let you know when they're awake."

She let a sound of content escape her before she fell asleep against her fiance, dreaming of what their future would be.


	15. O

_AN: You may want a tissue of this chapter, since the few people that have read this before I published it said they got teary eyed. Enjoy._

 **O** ld

The first time she heard his bones pop when he got out of bed, she called him old. He gave her a look that said, "Not funny, Beckett." That look didn't last too long though, since she removed the sheet that was covering her naked body and he was focused more on that than her comment.

The second time she called him old, was when he groaned as he bent down to pick up the piece of paper he dropped. Again, he gave her one of those look that said that it wasn't funny. Before he could stand up, she goosed him and for the rest of the day he thought about how he just wanted to solve this murder so he could get his girlfriend home.

The third time was when Alexis moved out to her own apartment, with Pi. She reminded him that they all grew up and got old and that he couldn't pretend Alexis was a baby anymore. She hadn't said the words directly, but she reminded him that none of them were getting younger and it was Alexis's turn to grow and learn to live her life without him constantly in it.

The fourth time was when she found a gray hair in his hair as she washed his hair in the shower. After an intense love making session, he was not expecting his fiance to call him old and find a gray hair. He was just glad that she found it after and not before. That would have been a mood killer.

The fifth time was when Alexis graduated college. He stopped her though before she could say the getting old part. He knew that that's what she was going to say because he caught the smirk that graced her face. However, Alexis called him old, once they met after the ceremony, so it didn't matter if he had stopped her. He still got called old.

The sixth time was when he went undercover in a nursing home. They hired someone to do his makeup and he pretended to be an older man to catch the nurse that was killing the patients. When she first saw him, she said, "Wow, Castle, just when I thought you couldn't get any older." He gave her a look, but she kissed that look right off of him. She told him that she'd still find him sexy when they both got old and gray and that was all he needed to hear. She told him to be careful, which he was, until the nurse tired to almost push him down the stairs when in the wheel chair. He was obviously arrested and and when Castle went to take his makeup off, he looked into the mirror. He hoped he didn't get too old too fast. He still wanted to spend many more years with Kate.

The seventh time was when she had her first mood swing. She said that he was an idiotic old man and she didn't want to speak to him before she headed into their bedroom. Twenty minutes later, she came out and said that she was sorry. He handed her a bar of chocolate and told her that he accepted her apology.

The eighth time was when their daughter was born...but this time, she called them both old. He told her that they weren't and that their lives were just getting started.

The ninth time was a week after their daughter was born. They were sleep deprived and again, she called them both old and that they couldn't run on four hours of sleep like they did when they were teenagers and in their twenties. It seemed liked yesterday they were that age, but in reality it had been some time. He told her that he would get their daughter tonight and that she could catch up on sleep. They would switch tomorrow night.

The tenth time was a few days after their daughter started walking. She came home from work and saw him exhausted. "Too old to keep up with her, Castle?" He didn't have enough energy to give her a look, which she smiled at. "I'll make you some coffee and some dinner."

The eleventh time was when they found out they were having twins. This time, she called them both old, said that they were too old to raise twins. He reminded her that they would be just fine and that if she survived a bullet to the heart and he survived his kidnapping, they could handle twins. The twelfth and thirteenth time also involved her thinking that they were too old to raise twins, but again he reassured her.

The fourteenth time was when their daughter started school. He had been surprised that she hadn't had a moment between then and now. She called them both old, yet again, saying that it was just yesterday that they found out that she was pregnant. It did seem like yesterday, but their daughter was growing up and so were their twins...and yes, they were getting old.

It had been some time before the fifteenth time came along. They were at The Hamptons and he had pulled something in his back. Instead of having a romantic date on the beach, she was nursing him back to health in bed. She said, "Can't do the things you used to, Castle." He glared at her. "Don't worry, I'll put on that nurse costume you got me as a joke for Halloween. That will make you feel better." Oh yea, that made him feel better.

The sixteenth time was when their daughter graduated high school. "Castle, before we know it, she's going to be out of the house and married." He was not going to think about that, but as he looked at their baby girl walk on stage, he knew that that day would be coming sooner rather than later. He wished they didn't have to get old and they could just stay at this age forever, but he knew they couldn't.

The seventeenth time wasn't far from their daughter's graduation. Kate had ended up in the hospital. She had gotten shot, not fatal, but enough to get her out of work. "Castle, we're getting too old for this." This time, he agreed with her. The next day, she put in for her early retirement.

The eighteenth time was when she ran for senator...and won. "Castle, do you think we're too old for me to be doing this?" He shook his head and said that he still thought she was thirty and didn't look a day over that. She smiled at him and said that maybe he wasn't as old as his birth certificate said.

When the twins graduated high school, which also happened to be the day after Kate stepped down as Senator (wanting to really retire and spend time with him traveling), that was the twentieth time. "Castle, we're..." He just nodded, knowing that they were. The next day he told Black Pawn that he was retiring from writing and the day after, him and Kate booked a ticket to Paris. The twins were going to spend time with their sisters while him and his wife traveled around Europe. It was amazing.

When their daughter got married, he could have sworn that that was going to be the twenty-first time. She didn't say anything though. She just cried, mostly happy tears. He did too. He then thought that it was going to be when their daughter told them six months later that she was pregnant, but again, Kate didn't. She just cried, again. She later told him that she was glad that she was able to see what her mother never got to. The twenty-first time though happened when his mother died. She rested her head against his shoulder as they said their goodbyes at the grave site. "She made looking old look so easy. I hope we make our kids think that when they look at us." He brought her closer to him and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He couldn't speak, but he knew that he didn't have to in order for her to know that he was saying that they did.

The twenty-second time was when their granddaughter was born. They looked at their grandchild, in the nursery, and Kate rested her head against his shoulder (something she loved doing). "When did we get so old, Castle?" He laughed, but didn't respond to her. Instead, he just looked at his first grandchild. Alexis found out that she couldn't have kids and had been working on trying to adopt. It was a lot harder than what the movies and TV shows made it out to be. He knew the day would come though and sure enough, two weeks later, Alexis and her husband were parents to a beautiful baby boy.

It was years until the twenty-third time came around. He had fallen in the loft and ended up in the hospital. He didn't break anything, but from that moment on he was now advised to use a walker. He was in his late 70s, but that still didn't mean he had to like it. "Castle, we have to do something with your walker to make you not look so old." They ended up putting superhero stickers on it and super glued a small cape to the front of it. He loved it.

Now, they were at the twenty-fourth time. He was sitting next to her, in their bed. The doctors had sent her home yesterday, saying that there was nothing more that they could do for her. She had cancer and they couldn't fight it. "Castle, do you think we made looking old look easy?"

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Yea, I think we did."

She moved her head to place a kiss to his lips. "I'm glad we got to grow old together."

"Me too, Kate. I just wish we had more time."

"I know...but I'll still be here to haunt you."

"Just don't flush the toilet when I'm in the shower."

She smiled before she placed another kiss to his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too...Always."

"Always." With that, Kate closed her eyes. He rested his forehead against hers and cried, knowing his wife was now gone. He didn't make it even more than a day without her. He took a nap as their children went out to arrange their mother's funeral and never woke up.

The twenty-fifth time was when he saw Kate on the other side. She looked exactly like she did on their wedding day. "Couldn't live without me, old man?" He smiled brightly and picked her up in his arms, holding her tightly to him and knowing that he would still be able to hear his wife call him old.


	16. P

_AN: It definitely means a lot of all the reviews from last chapter. That is my favorite chapter of this whole series, so I'm glad you enjoyed it. I hope you enjoy this one too. Don't worry, you won't need tissues for this one._

 **P** ranks

She was at fault for this. She started this prank war about a week ago. She had the day off and he had a meeting at Black Pawn, so she decided to set the parental controls on the T.V. She knew Castle was going to want to come home and relax, but he was going to be in for a surprise when he found out he could only watch Nick Jr.. When he came home, she pretended everything was normal and told him to sit down on the sofa while she made him a cup of coffee. He did so and as she was making the coffee, she heard him yelling at the T.V.

"Why are you blocked?! We don't have parental controls!"

Kate bit her bottom lip, knowing that this simple thing wasn't extreme, but him yelling at the T.V was a little amusing, which is exactly what a prank was. She brought his coffee over to him.

"Beckett? What's the code?"

"What code?"

He gave her a look. "Beckett, I'm not watching Nick Jr. What's the code?"

"Look at your coffee and maybe you'll find your answer."

"Beckett..."

"Look at it."

He did and saw that she had written the numbers out with the foam. He entered them and the block was turned off.

His payback wasn't as simple. He replaced her conditioner with mayonnaise while she was at work. He didn't go with her because he wanted to work on some chapters. His prank was part of him procrastinating on those said chapters. He got the mayonnaise out of the fridge and emptied her conditioner bottle. There wasn't a lot in there, so he really wasn't wasting too much. He knew that she was going to want to take a shower when she got home, so this was perfect.

When she got home, he was writing on his laptop. He could see that she was exhausted and sure enough, she told him that she wanted to just take a shower and get into bed. She pressed a kiss to his lips before she headed into the bathroom. He was tempted to tell her not to use the conditioner, since he saw that she was tired, but this was payback. He tried to focus on his writing, but he kept waiting for her to discover what he had done. Sure enough, after a few minutes, he heard it.

"Castle!"

He wasn't sure if he should run for his life first or put her gun in the safe. He went with the latter. As he closed it, she came out with a towel wrapped around her body and her arms crossed over her chest. "Something wrong?"

"Oh you know damn well what's wrong, Castle. You put mayonnaise in my conditioner bottle!"

"Maybe next time, you shouldn't put the child locks on."

"Well you are a man child so I thought it was only fitting." She grabbed the new bottle of conditioner, which he had left on the dresser for her earlier, before heading back into the bathroom.

She got him back the next day. If he thought putting mayonnaise in conditioner bottles was fun, well he was going to love to discover that the filling in the Oreos was actually toothpaste. He was out with Ryan and Esposito, having a few drinks. She declined the offer, saying that she was going to take advantage of a quiet loft and run a bath. She took her bath, so she wasn't really lying. She just left out the part where she was going to be pranking her husband.

She opened about five Oreos and scrapped the icing off of them. She then refilled them with the cinnamon toothpaste. She picked that one because Castle hated that one. She didn't blame him, since she preferred the mint kind as well, but for this prank cinnamon was her go to. She made sure that they looked exactly like the others in the package before she placed them on a plate. She poured herself a glass of milk before she made herself her own plate, obviously ones with real icing in the middle.

Castle had walked in as she was just eating her first one. "Cookies and milk without me!? I hope you're sharing." She smiled and pointed to his very own plate. He smiled and placed a kiss to the top of her head. "I have a great wife." He poured himself a glass of milk and sat down next to her. He picked up the Oreo and placed the full thing in his mouth. Kate bit the inside of her lip, trying not to laugh as his eyes widen and he spit out the Oreo.

"What is that?! That is not an Oreo!"

"Oh it's an Oreo, just with a different filling." She then handed him the tube of toothpaste before getting up from her seat, walking away with her victory.

He waited a few days before he got her back for that one. He was helping Alexis move into her last college dorm room and she was out with Lanie, so he had plenty of time to pull this off. He made some Jello and put her badge inside the Jello. He was going to put her gun in there, but he figured that this would be easier to clean off. Even though they were in a prank war, he didn't want to damage anything of hers and he didn't want to hurt her. He put the Jello in the fridge and let it cool. He just hoped that he would get home before his wife.

He did end up getting home before her, which let him transfer the Jello mold onto the plate. He laughed, somewhat amused by his own prank, as he saw her badge in the center. He placed it back in the fridge and taped a note to the plate that said, "Hopefully, your murder won't be as messy as getting your badge out. Love, Rick." He closed the door to the fridge and went to wash the bowl, leaving no evidence behind. Kate got home and had already eaten, so they just went to bed. She was on call, so she wanted to get some extra rest, just in case.

Sure enough, her phone rang at midnight. Castle was in a deep sleep though and didn't wake up until he felt her shaking him awake. "What's wrong, Kate?"

"I can't find my badge. Did you see it?"

"No, I..." He then remembered what he did and she saw that look.

"Castle, what did you do."

He gave her a smile. "You might want to check the fridge."

She left their room and headed into the kitchen. She opened the fridge and saw her badge, trapped in the Jello. "Really, Castle?!"

Now, it was her turn to get him back and end this prank war with the ultimate prank...she just couldn't think of what that was. She asked Lanie for help, but she was giving her things that might end up hurting him and she didn't want that. She told her to spray the floor with cooking spray, but she didn't want Castle breaking a hip. She didn't trust Ryan or Esposito not to tell Castle that she was up to something, so she didn't ask them for help. She just sat at her desk, trying to think of the perfect prank to pull on her husband...that was until a travel coffee cup was put in her line of vision.

She smiled as turned her attention to Castle. "I thought you said you weren't coming in today."

"My meeting ended early and it's too quiet around the loft. What were you lost in thought about?"

She sighed. "I'm trying to think of the ultimate prank to pull on you."

He laughed. "I'm guessing you're stuck?" She nodded. "Why don't we call a truce and focus on who's going to win our laser tag battle instead?" He extended his hand, waiting for her to shake it.

She smiled at him and shook his hand. "Truce, but you should know that in high school and college, laser tag was my sport."

"Katherine Beckett, just when I thought you couldn't get any hotter."


	17. Q

**Q** uiet

It was really quiet around the precinct without Castle. Sure, phones were ringing, people were talking, someone was making coffee, but it was quiet for her. She just looked at his empty chair, wondering what he was doing right now. She knew he was at The Hamptons, with his ex-wife, and with that thought in mind she didn't want to think about what he was doing. How could he get back with her? She was his ex-wife for a reason! Did he suddenly have amnesia and forget that?

She broke up with Demming because of him, because she wanted to be with him and see where their relationship could go. She hated that he broke her heart and didn't even know it. She was tempted to call him, tell him that he was the biggest asshole she had ever met, but it wasn't his fault. He didn't know and she should have told him sooner. She should have never started dating Demming when she had these feelings for Castle. She wasn't even sure why she did that. Sure, he was attractive and charming, but he wasn't Castle.

Now, she was left without a boyfriend (not that she need one to live her life) and staring at an empty chair.

"Beckett," Ryan said knocking her out of her thoughts. "We've got a body."

"I'll meet you there."

He nodded and walked off with Esposito.

"Do you think we should do something?"

"Like what? Call Castle and tell him what? That Beckett is missing him and that he should dump his ex-wife to be with her. He needs to see that by his own."

"But Javi, she just keeps staring at that empty chair by her desk."

"Then we'll move it."

"She'll kill us. She glared at the Robert for bumping into it when he was cleaning the other day."

"Why do those two have to be so stupid?"

"Like you and Lanie?"

"Hey, Lanie and I are different," he said as he walked into the elevator.

"Oh?"

"Yea, we both know that the other likes the other and we've had a few booty calls."

"Sounds like you've got everything under control," he said sarcastically.

Even though she knew that Ryan and Espo were on their way to the murder scene, she hadn't got up from her seat yet. Her focus was back on the empty chair. She went to pick up her cell phone, opened her contacts, and hovered her finger over his number. Before she could press it though, she turned off her phone. She had no idea what she was going to say to him and she knew he was with Gina. So, she got up from her desk and went to meet Ryan, Esposito, and Lanie.

* * *

That was the last time that she thought the precinct was quiet, until today. It was her first day as captain and Castle wasn't there. He was taking care of their baby girl. Gates had retired and she had recommended Kate to take her place. She accepted and they worked it out to where Gates would be present until Kate came back from maternity leave. She was back at staring at the empty chair, next to her desk.

She had brought it in, considering that that was Castle's chair and she wanted it close to her desk. She played with her pen as she just stared at the empty chair, wishing that he was there with her. The knock on the door brought her out of her thoughts.

"Becket, you okay?"

She gave Ryan a soft smile. "Yea, I'm fine. It's just quiet."

He laughed. "Well, we got a murder. You want to come along?"

"I'll meet you there."

He nodded before he exited her office. She was getting up from her desk, about ready to put on her jacket, when she heard a knock on her door again. She turned around and smiled brightly when she saw it was Castle and their daughter.

"Babe, what are you doing here?!"

"It's too quiet."

"Castle, you're with a three month old, how can it be quiet?"

"Cause you're not there."

She smiled and walked over to place a kiss to his lips. "It's quiet here too, for the same reason."

He smiled and extended his arms, offering her their daughter. "You have time to hold her or do you have to go somewhere?"

She took off her jacket. "Ryan and Esposito can handle it. I'll send them a text letting them know that I won't be joining them." She placed her jacket on her desk before taking their daughter from him, who gave her a soft smile when she was in her arms.

He went and sat down in the chair next to her desk. He placed his hand on her knee and smiled at her. There was silence for a moment...before their daughter started to fuss (it was her lunch time). "Well looks like your quiet moment is over," he said as he took out a bottle from the diaper bag.

"I'm perfectly okay with that. I prefer this any day over quiet."

"I'll remind you of that when you complain that we didn't get any sleep last night."

She gave him a glare before she took the bottle from him, giving it to their daughter (who gladly took it into her little mouth). She preferred this, having her daughter and her husband with her. She didn't need quiet in her life, she just needed them.


	18. R

**R** ock my World

It was her first day as captain and he had got her a gift to place on her office desk. She was going to love it. He had already given her a bracelet this morning, but this was going to be on her desk all the time for everyone to see. He was tempted to give her this gift earlier, but he figured he'd come and surprise her on her first day. Maybe take her out for lunch if she had time. He wanted to see his wife in action. That was one of the things he loved about shadowing her. He got to see her be this total bad ass and it was sexy as hell.

He walked into the precinct and knocked on her door as he entered. She lifted her head up and gave him a smile.

"Babe, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I just came to see if my wife could spare a few minutes away to go get some lunch with her husband. We could go to Remy's, grab a burger, one of those strawberry milkshakes that you like so much, extra order of fries."

"You had me sold when you said lunch." She got up from her desk and grabbed her jacket that was hanging up. She glanced back over to him as she put her jacket on. "What's in the box?" She walked over to him and placed a quick kiss to his lips, which he returned.

"If you're quoting Brad Pitt, you need a little bit more expression when you deliver that line."

She gave him a look. "Castle."

"It's another present." She opened her mouth to speak, but he stopped her. "Before you say I didn't have to do this, I know I didn't, but I couldn't pass it up." He handed her the box and she smiled. He watched her open it and the confused look on her face when she pulled out a rock.

"It's a rock?"

"It's a paperweight, for your desk. I figured it would be appropriate, since you rock my world."

She gave him a look that said that was terrible. "I can tell by the painting of the world on the rock." She took the rock and placed it on her desk. "I'll be sure to put plenty of paperwork that I think you should be doing under it."

"Nope, I don't shadow you anymore, Captain Beckett. I can no longer feel guilty for not doing paperwork nor can I be tricked into doing it." He saw that she bit her bottom lip and that caused him to speak again. "Or seduce me and trade paperwork for sexual favors...even though the latter is my favorite way of you getting me to do paperwork."

She smiled. "Oh I know it is." She took his arm. "Come on, Mr. Castle, take me to lunch."

* * *

When they got back from lunch, Ryan and Esposito were interrogating a suspect. Ryan had asked them to bring them back curly fries, so Castle was going to wait around to give them to him. That and he wanted to know about the case that they were working on. Even though he wasn't shadowing Kate anymore, he still wanted to know what was going on and to see if he could help any. Kate wasn't telling him anything either. Said something about if he did the paperwork he could know and he wasn't falling for that. They were in her office when they heard some commotion.

Kate got up from her seat on the sofa, to go see what was happening in her precinct. The suspect was running from the interrogation room. Well, if they didn't know he was guilty before, they knew it now. Kate stepped in front of him. 'Police, stop!"

With that, he stopped, but he took out a gun. Bad move, but it took Kate by surprise. He must have somehow got it off Esposito or Ryan. She highly doubt that he sneaked it into the precinct. "Take it easy. I don't want any trouble."

"Just let me go!"

She saw Ryan and Esposito coming out of the interrogation room, both of them holding their hand up to their head. She gave them the signal, with her eyes, to stay down. "I can't let you go, not until we finish asking you what we brought you in for."

"I didn't do it!"

"Then drop the gun and we'll just talk about what happened. We're not accusing you of anything, we just want to know what happened." Deep down, she had a feeling that this guy was guilty, but she wanted to calm him down.

"No, let me go! Tell them to stand down." He motioned to the cops that were behind Kate that were holding their guns up, protecting their captain. She didn't move her eyes off of him as she gave the command.

"Stand down. It's alright. He's not going to shoot me. What's your name?" She already knew his name, since Ryan had told her it when he called her while they were at Remy's, but she wanted him to calm down.

"Joe."

"Joe, I'm Kate. Can you put the gun down now? No one here is going to hurt you." She saw him thinking for a few moments, whether he was going to do it or not, and as he bent down to put the gun down, Castle came out of the office and he hit him over the head with the paperweight he had given her. Joe was knocked out and Kate ran over to Castle while other officers went to Joe, to make sure he was okay and to cuff him. After all, he did assault a police officer and pulled a gun on one.

"Castle! You could have gotten yourself killed!"

"The safety was on."

She gave him a look. "You could have mouthed that to me."

He smiled at her. "I wouldn't be the man you fell in love with if you didn't."

She didn't want to smile, but she did. Memories of their first case together came to the forefront of her mind. "Looks like your gift proved to be better than just being a paperweight for paperwork."

He smiled. "What can I say, I'm a great gift giver."

 _AN: I wanted to tie in the first episode somehow with this chapter and this is what I came up with. I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see you Tuesday for another update :)_


	19. S

**S** morelette

She hated that she wanted this, that she was craving this. She glared down at her growing stomach. "You have to be your father's child, don't you? Mommy's pretty great too you know. You could have taken after me."

She cracked two eggs into the bowl and beat them with the fork until they were scrambled. She tossed the shells into the trash before adding a little milk to the eggs. She then sprayed the pan and poured the mixture into the pan. She turned on the stove and waited for the eggs to cook. If Castle woke up, she was just going to say she was making eggs. Just eggs. She kept the marshmallows, graham crackers, and the chocolate under a dish towel, so that he wouldn't see. She knew there was a chance he could just go over and uncover it, but she hoped that it wouldn't.

Her eggs were just about done, ready for the rest of the ingredients, when his voice made her jump a bit.

"What are you making? It's 3am," he rubbed his eyes as he walked into the kitchen. He wrapped his one arm around her shoulder as he used his other hand to rub the rest of the sleep out of his eyes.

"Babe, go back to sleep. Little peanut here has me craving eggs."

"Eggs? Well I can make it for you. You know I make a great breakfast. That and you shouldn't be on your feet."

"Yes, I know, but I can make eggs. When I need to make pancakes, you're my man."

"I'm your man," he leaned down and placed a kiss to her lips. He turned to leave the kitchen and head back into their bedroom, but his eyes spotted the towel. "What's under the towel?"

"Just some garbage. I was going to throw the towel out too. It has a horrible stain on it and it's old anyways." He didn't buy it and went over to it. "Castle..." It was too late though. He picked up the towel and saw what was underneath it.

"You're making a smorelette!"

"I am not!"

"Yes, you are!" He smiled as he placed his hand on her stomach. "Oh, little one, just when I thought I couldn't love you more." She rolled her eyes. "Now I really have to make you your eggs. The smorelette master is needed to make a proper smorelette." She again rolled her eyes as he placed the chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers into the pan. She sat down on one of the stools and watched as her husband cooked.

"I hope I don't end up actually liking these after this little one is born."

"Oh, come on Beckett, we could make every Sunday Smorelette Sunday! It would be just like how your mother used to make a huge breakfast, but with smorelettes!"

"It's too early for you to be this excited about this."

"Are you kidding?! My wife, my beautiful wife, has finally had a craving for a smorelette, one of my favorite things, and I get to make it for her. It's like Christmas!"

She gave him a soft smile. Even though she wasn't thrilled that their child was making her crave this, she was glad that Castle was happy. It wasn't long before she had a plate in front of her and a glass of milk, something that Castle had recommended that would go well with her meal. He sat down next to her before she took her first bite. He grabbed his cell phone off of the counter, he had left it there last night, and recorded his wife trying her first smorelette. She cut a little piece off with her fork and brought it to her lips. She chewed the substance and had a facial expression on her face that he couldn't read.

"So?"

"I'm sorry, Castle, but I hope I never crave this again...However, this is hitting the spot."

He smiled and pressed the button to stop recording, before he put his phone back down on the counter. He placed a kiss to her stomach, letting his lips linger there for a moment and that's when they both felt the flutter. She looked down at him and he looked up at her. Both with the same awe look on their faces.

"Was that?"

Her smile grew. "They're kicking!"

He placed another kiss to her stomach, letting his lips linger once again, and sure enough they both felt another kick. He smiled widely against her stomach. "First the smorelette and now you're kicking. Daddy is so proud of you."

She placed her hand on her stomach, letting her thumb brush against it. "I guess that's their way of showing us that they like their daddy's idea of Smorelette Sunday."

"Yea?!"

"As long as there's more to this breakfast or brunch than just Smorelettes."

"Of course. I can't let my wife and my eldest daughter go hungry because their taste buds aren't as up to date as this little one's and I's."

She rolled her eyes. "I don't think that's the reason, Castle."

"Well, whatever it is, I'm glad they got it from me. Now, just as long as they have your eyes, I'll be an extremely happy dad."

"My eyes?" She took another bite of her smorelette.

"Yep. They'll have your gorgeous eyes and my taste buds. Your strength and my imagination. Your heart and my goofiness."

"What if I want them to have your heart?"

"The next one can have it."

"Next one?"

"Remember, we have three kids."

She rolled her eyes yet again. "Castle, we're not having three kids."

"Ok, Beckett, but when you can't keep your hands off of me after we have a second kid, I'll remind you of this."

"Oh, trust me, you won't be reminding me because it won't happen. Lets have this one first and we'll talk about having a second when they're older. That and we'll see if I kill you during labor or not."

"I'll be making sure that your gun is locked in the safe."

"Smart man," she leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "Now, lets go back to bed."

"Practicing for number two?"

"I was thinking of just going back to sleep, but I think that could be arranged." She swayed her hips as she walked back into their bedroom.

"I knew it. That Smorelette is an aphrodisiac."


	20. T

_AN: Some were confused with the last chapter. She's pregnant with Lilly. I wrote that part of the fanfic before the finale and just never changed it. Sorry for the confusion! Also, if you don't follow me on Twitter, I posted yesterday that this update was late due to the fact that I was away for an overnight trip. Enjoy!_

 **T** ease

Kate had been a tease since he met her, pretty much. The way she came to the bookstore when he was doing a reading, the sexual innuendos, the outfits she wore sometimes, telling him that she rode her motorcycle in tight leather. That was nothing compared to how she teased him now, now that they were together. She did things with her mouth that he had never experienced before. She also did things to him with the rest of her body. The way she would rub against him, how she bucked her hips into his, and his personal favorite, when she used that seductive voice of hers.

Tonight was no exception. It started with her wearing that black dress that he loved so much. It was just a simple black dress, but the way it hug her curves...god, it made him just want to rip it off of her and forget whatever they had planned. She wore the diamonds earrings that he had given her for Valentine's Day last year and the necklace that matched for their anniversary. She wore those black high heels too, that made her long legs even longer and sexier.

He knew she did all of this on purpose, but he didn't say anything. He just extended his arm and led them out of the loft, to go to dinner. He got into the car, pretended that everything was normal, until she leaned over and used that seductive tone that drove him crazy.

"I'm not wearing anything under this dress, so I hope that dinner isn't going to take too long," she nipped at his earlobe.

He bit his bottom lip, trying not think about the fact that the sexy woman next to him wasn't wearing her panties or her bra. "I thought we'd get Italian."

"Italian sounds great, Castle." She pulled back and buckled up.

He looked over to her and she had this smile on her face that said she was innocent. He just gave her a look that said, "You're not innocent," before he drove off to their favorite Italian place.

Throughout dinner, things didn't get any better. She ran her foot up his leg multiple times during dinner, she ate seductively, licked her fingers when she had some chocolate on it, she slowly ate the food off of a fork or a spoon. She was trying to kill him, he was sure of it. Oh, but what a way to go. He thought that maybe she'd give him moments of peace driving back home, but he was wrong. She kept running her fingers up and down his leg, getting dangerously close each time to where he wanted her. Each time they stopped at a red light, she'd move her hand and run her fingers up her leg, pushing her dress up just a little each time. Each time they stopped, the car behind them would have to beep when the light was green because he was obviously not paying attention. She would stop and move her fingers back to his leg when he started to drive once again.

He pulled into his usual parking spot and got out of the car, more quickly than he usually would have if she wasn't teasing him. He heard the small laugh escape her before he closed the door. He helped her out of the car and closed the door behind her. He walked them to the elevator and she didn't waste anytime with backing up against the wall. She pressed a passionate kiss to his lips, not wasting any time with parting his lips with her tongue. She explored every inch of his mouth with her tongue and just as she was going to tangle her tongue with his, she pulled away.

"Kate...," he groaned in displeasure.

She smiled. "We're at our floor." With that, the doors opened. She went to step out of the elevator, but he picked her up in his arms, tossing her over his shoulder. "Castle!"

"You've done enough teasing tonight. I'm making sure that you don't do anymore teasing and I can take you to bed," he said as he walked out of the elevator and headed towards the loft.

She reached down into his pocket, which caused him to jump a bit when he felt the squeeze she gave him. "Here's the key, babe."

He growled before he unlocked the door. "I'm going to make sure you pay for all this teasing, Katherine Beckett. Your handcuffs are going to be used against you." He gave a playful spank to her backside before he opened the door.

"Castle, I..."

"Mother," Castle interrupted her as he placed Kate down on her feet.

"Hello darlings. Did you have a good dinner date?"

"Yea, we did. Mother, what is all this?"

The living room furniture had been arranged and props were scattered around the room and the kitchen. "Alexis and I are rehearsing a scene. She just stepped away to take a phone call." Kate and Castle both looked at each other, giving each other a look that said that what they had planned wasn't going to happen tonight. "I could give you two..."

"Oh no, that's alright mother. We're both full and exhausted from dinner. We'll just be off to bed."

"Ah, well goodnight, darlings."

"Night, Mother."

"Night, Martha."

They walked into their bedroom and closed the door behind them. Castle went over and closed the door to his office as well. "I have to say, of all your teasing tonight, my mother ended up doing the worst teasing of them all."

Kate gave him a soft smile before she wrapped her arms around him. "If I would have know, I would have worn underwear."

He groaned as he buried his face into the crook of her neck. "I was just getting that thought out of my head."

She smirked before she pressed a kiss to the side of his head. "Sorry, babe. I'll make it up to you."

"Mmm, how's that," he said before he placed nipping kisses to her neck.

"I won't go to sleep in Pjs tonight...or any type of clothing for that matter and then in the morning, well you'll just have to wait and see."

He picked his head up and looked at her with a grin. "If what I think you're going to do tomorrow morning is what I think you're going to do, it definitely will make up for it." He moved one of his hands to the zipper of her dress and lowered the zipper until he got to the bottom. He leaned back in to press nipping kisses to the other side of her neck. "It's pretty quiet out there...you think they went to bed?"

Kate went to open her mouth, but then they heard Martha's voice screaming some mantra her character was supposed to say.

"I think you have your answer, Castle."

He groaned before he pulled away from his wife. "I'll see what we can find on T.V."


	21. U

**U** kulele

It was a long day. She had a rough case and she spent all day trying to solve it. She spent last night at the precinct, helping Ryan and Esposito, and she was finally coming home. She missed her husband, missed their bed. Oh god, she missed their bed. The sofa in her office wasn't as comfortable at all. It was fine to sit on, but to sleep on, that was a different story. Plus, there was nothing like sleeping in her husband's arms. She missed it when he wasn't there, sleeping next to her. She usually didn't spend nights at the precinct, but there were a few times where she just couldn't go home until the case was solved. Then there were the nights where he was on a book tour. Those were rough for the both of them and usually fell asleep face timing each other.

She put the key in the lock and unlocked the door. As soon as she opened the door, she heard the sound of an instrument. She was a bit confused, but she figured it must have been Martha or Alexis. Alexis liked trying new things and Martha, well it might have been for a role. It could have been Castle, but he usually told her that he wanted to try something new. Usually, because he was trying to convince her to do it with him. She remembered the conversation that they had about how he wanted to take sky diving lessons far too well. That, thankfully, didn't happen. She had a rebellious side to her, but jumping out of a plane wasn't something that appealed to her. Although, she'd do it for him.

She took off her shoes, before she called out to see where her husband was. "Castle?" Most days, when he heard the door open, he met her there. However, when he was writing or waiting for her in the bedroom, he didn't greet her.

"In here, Beckett."

She heard his voice coming from their bedroom and as she walked, the sound of the instrument got louder. What was he doing playing an instrument? Even after all this time, he had a way of surprising her. "Babe, what are you doing?"

His tone was playful when he answered her. "Come find me and you'll see."

She bit her lip, thinking that maybe he was waiting in bed for her naked. That would definitely be nice to come home to. She walked into their bedroom and saw him sitting on the edge of their bed, playing a ukulele. He was fully clothed and wearing a lei around his neck as he looked at her, still playing the ukulele. There were flower petals on the floor and on the bed, they looked like they matched the lei he was wearing. If they weren't, the colors matched anyways. They were purple and white flowers and they were beautiful. Candles were lit and the room smelled...it smelled like an ocean breeze, just minus the seaweed.

"Welcome home, sweetheart."

She laughed. "What is all this?"

"This is me showing you that ukulele lessons are not a waste of time...even though it wasn't you that told me that they were, it was mother." He placed it down on their bed before he got up and headed to the side table. He picked up an envelope and walked over to her. "And when we go to Hawaii, I can show off what I know to the locals."

"Hawaii?" He handed her the envelope and she opened it to see that there were two first class tickets to Hawaii...leaving tomorrow. "Tomorrow?!"

"I already called, putting in your vacation time, I bought you some new clothes...not that you'll be needing much considering when we're in our room I will be stripping you from your clothes every second I can get, and a car has been called to pick us up tomorrow morning and bring us to the airport. That is...if you want to go."

She wrapped her arms around him and brought him down to kiss him. It wasn't too passionate, but it wasn't just a simple kiss. When she broke the kiss, she rested her forehead against his. "Of course I want to go, Castle! This is amazing! But why? It's not our anniversary or my birthday...or your birthday."

"It doesn't have to be. I just want to take my wife on a special trip, have her relax, make sure that she's totally pampered and loved, and enjoy a week away together. You've had a few rough cases these past few months and you deserve to let your hair down. Plus, a little birdie told me that you have always wanted to go here and never have."

"When did you talk to my dad?" Her husband was sneaky, there was no doubt about that. He surprised her more than anyone else had in her life. She loved that he wanted to surprise her, even though sometimes those surprises were expensive gifts that she didn't need. She still loved it though when he surprised her, none the less.

"When I asked him if he had any ideas of where to take you to relax. I had a few ideas, but I didn't want to pick the wrong place. You deserve this Kate and I'm just glad that I was able to give it to you and that I was able to get you the time off from work."

She smiled at him before she placed a soft kiss to his lips. "Castle, anywhere we would have gone, it would have been the right place. I would be with you and that's all I need for a perfect getaway from home and from work. I just need my handsome husband." She leaned in and placed another kiss to his lips, which he returned.

"And I just need my beautiful wife." He stole a kiss from her before he unwrapped his arms from around her and picked up the ukulele. "You want me to teach you how to play the ukulele? You can show off your skills with me to the locals. Oh! We can start a band! Is there such think as a ukulele band?! "

She laughed before she took the instrument from his hand. She placed it on their dresser before turning her attention back to her husband. "I don't know if there is such a thing as a ukulele band, but I'm sure if you google it, you can find one. Also, you can have that as your special skill and I'll let you wow the locals. However..." She took the lei off of his neck. "I do think that you should get laid." With that, she playfully pushed him back onto the bed. She wasted no time leaning in and kissing him passionately. She might have been exhausted, but she wasn't too tired to do this. She let her tongue part his lips and explore every inch of his mouth. She felt him moving his leg a bit, which made her break their kiss. "I know what you're up to, Mr. Castle," she said before leaning back in and placing nipping kisses to his neck.

He let a chuckle escape him, before a groan. "Oh?"

She hummed against his skin. "You're trying to get on top...but not tonight."

He moved his hands slowly down her back. "I was doing no such thing."

She nipped at a sensitive spot on his neck a little harder than she usually did, which got a groan out of him. "Oh?"

"Ok, maybe I was." His hands moved until he reached the hem of the skirt she was wearing. "You know, one of my favorite things about you being captain is the skirts you wear." He sneaked one of his hands up her skirt and let his finger brush over her folds, that were currently covered by her panties. It was her turn to let a moan escape her.

"Castle..."

He used his other hand to raise her skirt higher, so it was resting at her hips, before he moved that hand to her hair. He gently tugged on it, so she would move from his neck. Not that he didn't enjoy what she was doing to his neck. He just wanted to kiss her and that's exactly what he did. He captured her lips in a passionate kiss. He used the kiss as a distraction and let one of his fingers slip into her panties, letting his finger find her clit and brushing against it. She let a moan into his mouth and bucked her hips. He let a groan of his own escape him, feeling how wet she was for him. That never got old.

She broke their kiss and moved his hand away from her clit. He pouted, but that didn't last long when he saw her taking off her shirt. She then proceeded to unzip and unbutton his jeans before sliding them down his waist and to his ankles. As she did that, he took of his own shirt and tossed it to the floor, joining Kate's. She wasted no time taking his boxers off and tossing them to the floor as well. She then straddled his waist and before she could do anything else, his hands went behind her back to unclasp her bra. He moved the straps down her shoulders and tossed it behind him.

"Since you like the skirt so much, Castle, you want me to leave it on?"

He didn't respond to that question with words. He unzipped her skirt and hooked his fingers into her panties as well as he pushed it down her waist. She moved a bit, so he could strip her from the rest of her clothing, but went back to straddling his lap as soon as her skirt and panties were off of her. She didn't join them right away. She leaned in and kissed him passionately first. She thought about teasing him, but she didn't. Instead, when the need to breathe became more present, she broke their kiss and then joined their bodies together. They both let out a sound of pleasure when she did that. She thought about taking things slow, which is did for about 10 seconds until the need to just ride her husband took over her. She moved her hips hard and fast against him, which he made sure to keep the same rhythm as well. Even though she was riding him, he made sure she wasn't doing all the work.

When he knew she was close, his hands moved from her waist. One went to her breast and the other went to her clit. He brushed his thumbs against her skin before he tugged on her nipple and her clit. He knew her orgasm was going to trigger his own and he knew this would push her over the edge. He did the same move again and sure enough, she screamed out his name as she had her orgasm.

"Castle!"

"Kate!" He groaned as he had his own orgasm.

He moved his hands back to her waist and she kept moving her hips until she just couldn't anymore and collapsed on top of him. He wrapped his arms around her as they both tried to catch their breathe.

"That...was so much better...than teaching you the ukulele."

She smiled before she leaned in a pressed a kiss to lips. "I thought so too."


	22. V

**V** alentine's Day

Besides Christmas, this was his favorite holiday. Even though some claimed it to be just a day that greeting cards made up and was just an excuse for people to buy flowers, he loved it. He loved it even more now that he had Kate in his life. It was their fourth Valentine's Day together. He wasn't going to do anything too fancy, considering that he knew she didn't really care for it when he went overboard. Kate was a simple girl and while she did enjoy the expensive gifts he got her, she didn't want one everyday and she would be very happy if he had made her a handmade gift. He thought about doing that, but he went with the earrings that he had seen her eyeing last week when they were walking in Manhattan.

Another reason why they were taking it easy was because Kate wasn't feeling that great the past few days. She had felt nauseous and tired, so he didn't want to do anything too crazy. Instead, he was going to make his wife breakfast in bed, maybe have some fun in the shower, getting lunch at their favorite comfort food truck, shopping in Manhattan (where he was going to bring her into the store and pick up those earrings for her), hot chocolate as they walked central park, and then a romantic dinner.

He wasn't sure what Kate would be in the mood for, but he made her french toast with some bacon. He, of course, made her some coffee to go with it. He made a cup for himself and some food for him as well, that way he could join her in bed. He looked at the time and made his way to the front door. Just as he opened it, the man delivering the flowers was just about to knock. He was glad that he prevented that, since he didn't want Kate to wake up just yet.

"Good timing. Thank you." He paid the guy and put the flowers in a vase. He brought them to their bedroom first, then brought the food in. He placed the tray down on the side table and then proceeded to wake his wife up. He pressed soft kisses to her skin. "Kate, it's time to wake up." He laughed when she grumbled. "Your breakfast and coffee is going to get cold."

She opened one of her eyes, looking to make sure that there was actually coffee and breakfast. There was, so she opened her other eye. She moved her hands up to her eyes, getting rid of the sleep and waking herself up a bit more. "What time is it?"

"8am."

She groaned again. "Castle, why so early?"

"Cause we have a big day today, my love." He pressed a kiss to her lips. "Good morning."

"Morning." She sat up and he moved the tray, so it was where they both could reach. "Castle, when did you have the time to get me flowers?"

"I had them delivered just a few minutes ago. You like them?"

"They're perfect."

He handed her her coffee mug and clinked hers with his. "Happy Valentine's Day." He took a sip of his coffee, but he noticed that she didn't. "Not in the mood for coffee?"

"No, I would love to have it, but I can't."

"Is it going to make you sick?"

"No, Castle, it's because of the caffeine in it."

"That's kind of the point of coffee, sweetheart."

She smiled and took his hand in his. "I know, but it's not good for the baby."

His eyes widened. He was glad he wasn't eating or else he would have chocked on his food. "Baby?"

She nodded. "Rick, we're pregnant. That's why I've been feeling sick. I went to the doctor during my lunch hour yesterday and she called me when you were in the shower last night. I wanted to tell you, but I figured that this would be the perfect Valentine's Day gift...at least I hope it is."

"Are you kidding?! This is the best gift I could have ever gotten!" He leaned in and kissed her, letting her know how much he loved her, loved their baby, how happy he was, and so much more.

She smiled against his lips, once the kiss was broken, glad that he was happy about their new addition. "I'm glad you're happy."

"Happy doesn't even come close to what I'm feeling. Amazingly happy, comes closer, but still doesn't give it justice." He leaned in to place another kiss to her lips. "Do you want that decafe coffee?"

She smiled. "No, that's okay. I'll just have some orange juice."

"I'll be back." He pressed another kiss to her lips before he got up from their bed and headed into the kitchen. He got a glass for her and poured a generous amount of orange juice into it. He came back into their bedroom and handed her the glass before getting into bed.

"Thank you, for not just the orange juice, but for breakfast."

"You're welcome, but you definitely don't have to thank me." As they ate their breakfast, Castle couldn't help but think of what their life was going to be like now with a baby on the way. He couldn't wait to meet their son or daughter. "When's your first doctor's appointment?"

"Friday."

"I'll cancel my meeting with Paula."

"Castle, you don't..."

"Kate, this is our baby. I am going to be there for every appointment, for every craving you have, for everything in between now and when you go into labor. And I'll still be there once our baby is in this world. You can't get rid of me, sweetheart."

She smiled and it was her turn to press a kiss to his lips. "Happy Valentine's Day."

"Happy Valentine's Day."


	23. W

**W** ake up Call

She woke up before him, which wasn't that much of a surprise. Kate was usually the first one that was awake, unless he had a meeting with Black Pawn or he wanted to cook her breakfast in bed. She looked over to her sleeping husband and smiled. She snuggled in closer to him, hoping maybe that she could get in a few more hours of sleep. However, the more she looked at her husband, the more she wanted him to wake up and enjoy their morning together.

She pressed soft kisses to his face, trying to wake him up. He let a groan escape him and pulled her closer to him. "Don't get up yet, stay in bed."

With those words, Kate stopped her kisses. It was clear to her that he wanted a few more hours sleep. So she just rested her head against his chest. She drew those little circles on his chest, the ones that she knew he liked and the ones that helped lull her to sleep.

"Mmm, Kate."

She looked at him, confused that he was using that tone. She wasn't doing anything that was pleasurable, he didn't get turned on by these circles. Like her, they lulled him to sleep.

"Don't stop."

She felt his body reacting and she knew he was having a dream. With that, she pressed nipping kisses to his neck, which got her a groan. She looked at him, seeing if he was still in his sleep like state. When she saw that he was, she smiled against his skin and trailed her kisses downward. She moved the sheet with her as she went down his body. Sometimes, she just made her way underneath the sheet, like when she knew Martha and Alexis were home when she woke him up like this. However, with them being in The Hamptons for the weekend, she didn't have to worry about that.

She made sure to run her tongue over his extra sensitive spots as she placed nipping kisses down his body. She didn't stop until she got to his length. When she got to his sensitive skin, she let her tongue run over the tip of him, which caused him to groan and buck his hips. She looked up at him, to see that his eyes were still closed. With that, she took the tip of him into her mouth and started sucking hard.

That caused him to wake up. His hand went into his hair and he opened his eyes, looking down at her. "God, Kate...this is so much better than that dream."

She would have smiled, but her mouth was a little busy at the moment. She kept sucking on his sensitive skin, starting to suck a little harder and faster as she took more of him into her mouth. She got a louder groan out of him each time she picked up the pace. This wasn't the first time that Kate woke him up like this, so she knew exactly what he liked and what woke him up the most.

However, he surprised her this time. He tugged on her hair, as to tell her that he wanted her to stop. She released him from her mouth and looked at him with a confused look. "Castle, what's...?"

"Nothing is wrong. I just...I want you and if you keep doing that, you're going to make me finish before I can have my wife."

"We have the loft to ourselves, babe, we can go a few rounds."

He chuckled as he watched her move, so she was laying on top of him. "Oh trust me, Beckett, we'll be going a few rounds. As much as I love your mouth and the way you woke me up, I'm awake now, so..."

He flipped them over so now he was on top. "I want my wife." With that, he captured her lips in a passionate kiss. He didn't waste any time with parting her lips with his tongue, exploring every inch of her mouth before tangling his tongue with hers. He felt the moan escape her and it caused him to buck his hips into hers.

She bucked her hips into his in response before she angled her head to deepen their kiss. He used their kiss as a distraction, since she didn't realize he was about to enter her until she felt him inside of her. That caused her to break their kiss and let another moan escape her.

"Castle, as much as I love your mouth, I have to agree...this is always better."

There was nothing like being joined so intimately with the person that you loved more than anything else in this world. Sure, the foreplay was great and they both had plenty of orgasms from the other using their mouth or their hands, but nothing compared to this. They both knew that they would never get tired of this feeling and they would be making love to each other until they couldn't anymore.

He smiled down at her before he asked with his eyes if she was okay and ready for him to move. She gave him a soft smile, letting him know that she was okay. She loved that he always made sure that she was okay, even though they had done this many times before. He started to move, teasing her a little bit as he pulled out of her almost all the way before fully entering her once again. Each time he did so, he entered her a little rougher than he previously had.

He loved the moans that he was coaxing from her and loved how they got a little louder each time. He also loved it that they were alone, so that neither of them had to hold back. He was able to keep his eyes open, to see the way her head tilted back, the way her back arched, how she bit her bottom lip each time he hit that spot he knew drove her completely insane.

Her legs wrapped around his waist tighter, which prompted him to thrust into her harder and faster. She met his thrusts, which just made his orgasm approach quicker. He wanted her to have hers first though. He moved one of his hands to take hers, putting it above her head, and he used his other hand to move in between their bodies. He sought out her clit and rubbed his thumb, hard, against the sensitive skin. It wasn't long before she was screaming his name and them both reaching their orgasms simultaneously.

"Castle!"

"Kate!"

He kept moving his hips, but not as fast and not as hard, and moved his thumb from her clit. He wanted both of their orgasms to be prolonged until he couldn't any longer. He stopped and moved his head to place soft kisses to her neck. He trailed his kisses up to her cheek before he rested his forehead against hers.

"I love you..."

She smiled. "I love you too, Castle." She placed a soft kiss to his lips before rubbing her nose against his. She was silent for a bit before she broke it. "Do you think we made a baby this time?"

He moved, so that he pulled out of her and moved to the side of her. He immediately brought her into his arms, holding her close. "I hope so, but if not, we will in time. I know that we'll have a little girl or a little boy some day. When the time is right, it will happen. And when it does, we're going to be great parents."

She gave him a soft smile. "You always know what to say, Castle."

"Part of being a writer." He pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "But if you keep giving me wake up calls like you did, we'll be parents sooner rather than later."

She smiled. "Is that part of being a writer too?"

He returned her smile. "No, those words come out of my mouth because my wife is so god damn sexy."

She moved a bit, so that she was no straddling his hips. "Well, your sexy wife is ready for round two."

He grinned "You don't have to tell me twice."


	24. X

**X** avier

"He's Professor Xavier!"

"Castle, he's not. We don't live in a comic book," she said as she made a left.

"He's an older male, bald, in a wheel chair, he runs a school for gifted children, and we're going to talk to a woman named Jean! And she might be the one that killed him!"

"Castle, while all those things are true, he's not running a school of gifted children with superpowers. They've excelled in school."

"They have powers, Beckett!"

"Castle, don't make me drop you off here on the side of the road."

With that, he shut up. He wanted to see the X-Men. He got out of the car with her and headed to the front of the building. They walked inside and the first person he saw was Wolverine. He looked exactly like Hugh Jackman and as they walked towards the office Jean was supposed to be at, he kept looking at his hands...seeing if claws were going to come out of his knuckles. When they got out of earshot, he spoke.

"Beckett, that was Wolverine!"

She gave him a look. "Castle, that's not Wolverine."

"But Kate..."

She gave him another look before they headed into the office.

Jean had fiery red hair and before even Castle could even say that she was Jean Grey, Kate gave him a look.

"Thank you for meeting us, Ms..."

"Grey."

Castle went to open his mouth, yet again, and Kate gave him a look.

"How did you come to meet Professor Xavier?"

"I've known him since I was a young kid. When he first opened this school, I was one of his first round of students."

Every time she asked her a question, it wasn't helping Castle with his theory about this being the real life X-Men. Kate thanked her for speaking with them and told her that she would be in touch if they needed to ask her anymore questions.

As they were walking out, Castle noticed the ice that had formed on the steps. "Beckett! Look!"

"Castle, it's just ice."

"Ice that wasn't there when we entered."

"It's getting colder out."

"Or the Ice Man is here!"

She gave him a look. "Yes, Castle. That's exactly what it is. And when I turn around, I'm going to run into Cyclops." When she turned around, she bumped into a man and his glasses, which looked liked sunglasses, fell to the ground. "Oh I'm so sorry."

He kept his eyes closed as she gave him his glasses back. "That's okay. Just glad they didn't break. I can't see a thing without them."

When he walked off, Castle gave her a look.

"That is not Cyclops, Castle."

"Beckett! He kept his eyes closed until he had his glasses back on! If he opened them, lasers would have shot out of his eyes!"

"Castle, that is not why."

"Okay, Beckett, but if he were to have opened his eyes you would have seen that..."

"That he was perfectly normal and just had very blurry vision. No laser eyes, nothing."

"You want to bet?"

"I do."

With that he followed the man inside.

"Castle...," she went after him.

"Excuse me," he said as he tapped the man on his shoulder. "Do you mind if I try on your glasses. I've been meaning to replace mine."

Before he could answer, Beckett interrupted him. "Sorry, he just...has this theory."

"Oh?"

"He thinks..."

"Can you shoot lasers out of your eyes!?"

Kate rolled her eyes and he laughed. "No, I can't. I just have bad vision."

"Thank you. Come on, Castle."

"He's lying," he whispered to Kate as they walked out.

"Oh, I'm sure he is."

"Beckett, come on! He's part of the X-Men!"

"Again, I'm sure he is."

The sky started to turn dark and it looked liked it was about to rain. "Storm is using her powers."

"God, Castle. Just get in the car before it starts raining."


	25. Y

**Y** ou Only Live Once

He pretend like this was an amazing present...but it wasn't. He was terrified. Living with his mother for all these years, he learned how to hide that fear, but he wanted to just get out of this plane. For his birthday, she had gotten him sky diving lessons...for the both of them. She was right there next to him, waiting to get to a high enough point and the right spot for them to jump out of this plane. He wished that there was a way where they could jump out of this plane together, but they couldn't. She had to go first, or he did, with their instructor. He almost jumped when he felt his hand in hers.

"You okay, Castle?"

"Yea...yea, why wouldn't I be okay?"

She smiled. "Because your leg hasn't stopped shaking since we boarded the plane." With that his leg stopped. "Babe, if you don't want to do this, you don't have to."

"No." He looked at her. "You got me this for my birthday and it's been on my bucket list for a bit and since I've been to every Ikea in the world now, it's time to cross something else off my list. I'm just a little nervous."

She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Don't be. We'll be fine. I think we've done worse than jumping out of a plane. Being handcuffed and trapped in a room with a tiger that wanted to eat us comes to mind."

He laughed a bit. "Yea, but that wasn't our choice."

"Castle, most of the dangerous things that we've done haven't been our choice."

"Touche, Beckett."

She gave him a squeeze to his hand. "We'll be fine, I promise. You want me to go first?"

He thought about it. If he knew that she was down there waiting for him, he would be more likely to jump. He would want to make sure that she made it down their safely. "I think that's a good idea. It will give me a little more incentive to jump."

"Seeing me do it won't make it so scary?"

"No, well a little. However, I was thinking it would give me more of a push to jump. I would want to make sure my wife is okay."

She smiled at him before she placed a kiss to his cheek. "We're going to be fine, Castle. We're both going to meet at the bottom and you're going to tell me that you probably want to go again, which no...we can't...at least today."

He smiled at her before he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. Even though it was a soft, simple, kiss, he let her know that he loved her and that he loved the present that she got him...even if he was a little scared.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"You guys ready?"

They looked at the instructor before they looked back at each other. Kate gave Castle a smile. "I think so." She gave his hand a small squeeze. "I'll see you down there." She stole a kiss from him before she got up from her seat. Her instructor met her by the plane door and made sure that she was securely attached to him. He then made sure that they had what they needed it.

"You ready?"

She took a deep breath. Even though Castle was more nervous than she was, she was nervous. She let that breath out. "I'm ready."

"On three...one...two...three." And then they jumped out the door.

Castle saw his wife go out of the plane and he was tempted to go over to the door, make sure that she was okay. However, he knew that he wasn't going to be able to see anything. His instructor came over to him.

"You're up next."

Castle got up from his seat and walked over to the door. He was nervous, but he knew that Kate was right. He wanted to be down there with her too, make sure that his wife was safe and sound. His instructor did the same thing Kate's did. He made sure that they were secure and that they had everything.

"You ready?"

"You only live once...lets go."

"Alright, on three. One...two...three!" With that, they jumped out of the plane.

It was definitely an experience. He felt a mixture of like he was going to die and like he was very much alive. He liked the feeling, but he did wish that he had Kate here to experience it with him.

"You doing okay?!" He couldn't speak. He just gave his instructor a thumbs up. "We're going to stop falling as fast here in a bit! I'm going to pull the cord here in three...two..." He pulled the cord and the parachute came out of the backpack. They started to fall a little slower than they had been, which made Castle feel bit more at ease. The parachute was doing it's job and his fear of falling to the ground went away. He enjoyed it more now.

As he got closer to the ground, he could make out what they were falling to. He could see the buildings around them, the giant open field, a few people. It really was something. Kate did give him an amazing gift and he was glad that he didn't chicken out. He would have never experienced this. When he got even closer to the ground, he saw Kate there. She was smiling up at him. He smiled down at her before his feet touched the ground.

Kate came over to him and helped him up off the ground, once he wasn't attached to anything. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled brightly at him. "You did it, babe!"

"I did and it was amazing. Thank you for this." With that, he leaned in and pressed a passionate kiss to her lips. He didn't waste any time parting her lips, especially when he heard the moan that escaped her. He explored every inch of her mouth before he tangled his tongue with hers. He heard another moan escape her, which caused him to wrap his arms around him tighter and to angle his head to deepen their kiss. He let the kiss go on for a few more seconds, until the need to breathe became more present. He didn't go far though. He rested his forehead against hers.

"So, next year, do you want to go shark diving?" She, of course, was teasing him.

"I think doing this is enough in one lifetime, especially with all the adventure that comes with your job."

She smiled. "Touche, Mr. Castle." She pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "Next year, we can just stay in bed all day," she said in a seductive tone.

"Oh, Mrs. Castle, we don't have to wait till next year. We can spend the rest of the day in bed." He moved his hands down and gave her a gentle squeeze to her backside. "What do you say, Mrs. Castle?"

"Lets go home, birthday boy."


	26. Z

**Z** oo

He knew exactly what to do for their first real date. He knew that she was probably expecting a fancy restaurant, maybe tickets to one of New York's hottest shows, but he wasn't going to do that today. No, he wanted to do something he had never done before on a date. He told her that he was going to pick her up at about 11 in the morning and he knew that she was confused. He arrived, right at 11am, with two cups of coffee. When he knocked on the door, he was greeted by still a half asleep Kate Beckett. Even though she was half asleep, she was still so gorgeous.

"Coffee, thank god," she said as she took the cup from his hand.

"Good morning to you too, beautiful. My night was just fine. Slept like a baby, thank you for asking. And you?"

She looked at him and gave him a smile before she took a sip of her coffee. She closed her eyes as the coffee hit her taste buds. She took another sip before she opened her eyes and looked at him. "Where are we going that you picked me up this early?"

"You'll see."

"Is it far?"

"You'll see."

"Castle..."

"You're not getting any hints, Beckett."

"Making me wake up early and no hints?! You're lucky you brought me coffee."

They headed into the elevator, down to the lobby of her apartment building. If she was more awake, he would have taken advantage of the empty elevator, but he didn't. They then headed outside and to his car. He didn't have a driver with him today, he was going to drive. He opened the door for her and waited for her to get inside the car before he closed the door. He then headed over to his side and drove them to the Bronx. Kate knew where they were going, well what city they were going to anyways. When she saw them pull into the parking lot for the zoo, she had an idea of what they were doing here. When he parked the car, they got out of the car and headed inside the zoo. He took her hand in hers as they walked.

"The zoo is pretty big, and I'm pretty sure that you know that, but I want to take you to see the elephants first."

She smiled as she walked with him, towards the elephants. It had been such a long time since she had gone seen elephants. Probably since her mother died. When they got to the cage, she smiled as she saw the baby elephant next to it's mother. Not just because it was adorable, but because she saw why they had to go see the elephants first. He had asked them to have the baby elephant to wear a sign around his neck that said "Kate, be mine".

He motioned to the trainer to take it off of the elephant as quickly as she had put it on, considering he didn't know if the elephant was bothered by it. It didn't look like it, but he didn't want to take any chances. "I know that we said that what was between us, wasn't a one time thing, and it's been great. But I don't want it to be just about us being intimate. I want us to be together. We don't have to shout it from the roof tops or tell everyone when you go back to work, but I want you to be my girlfriend and I want nothing more to be your boyfriend."

She smiled at him. He really was adorable. She never expected him to do something like this. She should have known though that he would do some grand gesture to ask her to be his girlfriend. She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his lips. "Yes, Castle. I'll be yours and you can definitely be mine."

He smiled brightly at her and picked her up, so her feet were no longer touching the ground. It caused a mixture of a gasp and a laugh to escape her before his lips were on hers. Since they were in public, he didn't want to make it too passionate, but he made sure to tell her in his kiss how happy he was and how in love with her he was. He hadn't said the words since they crossed that line, but he made sure to let her know with his actions just how much he loved her. He knew sooner rather than later, he'd tell her, but for now he was happy with this. He placed her back on the ground and gave her another bright smile.

"I knew you wouldn't be able to say no to the elephant. Her name is Martha and when I heard that I just knew she would be the perfect girl to help me."

Kate laughed. "Next thing you know she'll be moving into the loft."

"Oh no. One Martha is enough in the Castle household. Although, I'd take this Martha over mother."

Kate playfully hit his arm before she rested her head against his shoulders, watching Martha and her mother. "She is cute though, so I'd take her home."

With her words, he then got an idea. "Let me see what I can do."

She gave him a confused look as he walked over to the trainer he had talked to yesterday. "Castle. No, we're not bringing an elephant home." He ignored her as he continued walking. "Castle!"

He spoke to the trainer and Kate shook her head. She crossed her arms when she saw him turn around to face her. He had this smile on his face that said, "Guess what I just did?!".

"We've adopted Martha. We're going to make sure that she gets well looked after with our donation and makes sure that she has everything she needs."

"And she's staying here right?"

He laughed. "Yes, Beckett, she's staying here." He wrapped his arm around her waist and walked with her to explore the rest of the zoo. "Like I said, I don't need two Marthas...plus, I already have an idea of who I want the next person or thing to move into the loft with me is." He knew that there was a chance that he would scare her off, but he took the risk.

She rested her head back against his shoulder, not wanting to freeze. She knew he didn't mean right this second, for him to move in with her, so there was no need to freeze. With that in mind, she answered him. "I'm pretty sure that that person or thing knows and will be here the day you ask them."

"You think they'll say yes?"

"If you use an elephant again, they definitely will."

He laughed a bit. "And if not?"

"I think they'll still say yes."

He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "I hope so."

 _AN: Thank you all so much for following this story and enjoying it. I had a blast writing it. I am working on something else, but it probably won't be ready for a bit. I'd like to thank the reviewers, my friend JJ, and all my Twitter and Tumblr followers that have been reading these updates. If you haven't followed me on Twitter yet, it's Smallville0628. I follow back. Again, thank you for reading and I'm glad you all enjoyed these one shots :)_


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